


Beastly Desires

by Ami_Writes



Category: Bloodborne (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Ascension, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blood and Gore, Canonical Character Death, Drug Use, Eventual Romance, F/M, Human Sacrifice, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Human Experimentation, Implied/Referenced Kidnapping, Implied/Referenced Torture, Insanity, Micolash is mostly insane due to the Mensis Cage, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Content, Not Really Character Death, Sexual Content, Slow Burn-ish
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-13
Updated: 2019-05-18
Packaged: 2019-10-27 11:16:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 24,519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17765774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ami_Writes/pseuds/Ami_Writes
Summary: Micolash, before he was the Host of the Nightmare of Mensis, was once a student at Byrgenwerth. Ami, a good friend and fellow student, shared many of the same passions as he did. Namely a natural curiosity of things beyond themselves, the Great One's, and a thirst for knowledge. But as we all know, Byrgenwerth was only the beginning. Soon, a slow descent into insanity was inevitable, and the Nightmare would become a new reality. This is the story of how two friends found comfort in the madness, in the Nightmare of which they lived, and each other.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> No Warnings Apply This Chaper. Enjoy Reading!

The sound of a teapot being placed down resounded through the now quiet upper loft, accompanied by the soft clink of a cup being lifted off of it’s saucer. A man dressed in a students robes took a sip, puckering his lips and grimacing slightly as he retracted from the ornate cup. A bit too hot for his liking. He glanced across from where he sat in a ring of rather fancy couches, his eyes landing upon a woman nose deep in a book.  
  
  
    She stuck her tongue out, dabbing a pair of fingers on it before returning them to the tome she held, turning the page with ease despite the thin paper seemingly wanting to stick to it’s neighbour.  
  
  
    He smiled, hunching over the round table between them slightly, elbows resting comfortably on his knees. His thin hands cradled the saucer and cup it held, as a small portion of the liquid sloshed over at the movement.  
  
  
    “It’s about how you like it right now.” A deep, nasally voice spoke. “Though it is a bit hot still…”  
  
  
    Another page turned, eyes still fixated on the texts in front of her. The only acknowledgement the man got that she was listening was a slight hum. Silence followed, lasting for quite a number of moments.  
  
  
    A quiet chuckle escaped him, and he took another sip of his tea. His face didn’t scrunch up this time, his cup of liquid sufficiently cooled to his liking. “You’re going to be here all night if you’re trying to read through all of that.” He gestured gently to the texts she had engrossed herself in, teacup still in hand. “And the tea will be as cold as the lake outside.”  
  
  
    Another hum, this time followed by a monotonous voice. “I just want to finish this passage first…” The words weren’t spoken, rather they seemed to drip and slide from her mouth in a lazy manner, clearly too focused on the book to give much thought about speaking.  
  
  
    Sighing under his breath, he returned his cup to the saucer with a quiet clink, followed by another series of them as he set them upon the table. Leaning back on the comfy upholstery, he let the back of his head rest on the top of the couch and looked up at the ceiling. Another small handful of moments, and the sound of a book being closed reached his ears.  
  
  
    As the woman shifted forward, reaching out to pour herself some tea, the man spoke again.  
  
  
    “Anything click this time?” He asked, watching as hot fluid flowed from the spout of the ceramic pot, splashing lazily into the cup below. Steam rolled off of the dark liquid continuously as it settled, obviously quite warm and still steeping.  
  
  
    Sitting back as her companion grabbed his own saucer of tea, she let out a puff of air, lips vibrating as she did so. “No, not this time.” Staring into her cup of hot tea, she could see her reflection gazing back, a defeated look overtaking her face.  
  
  
    He hummed. “If anyone would be able to piece together connections between the Great One’s and the Pthumerians, it would be you.” Pausing, he took a sip from his cup. “Are you sure there’s more to it though? You’ve been pouring over those research findings for weeks now.”  
  
  
    “Micolash, I’m telling you there’s more to it. There has to be, none of it makes much sense otherwise.” She looked up at him, her previous expression breaking through into one of passion.  
  
  
    Shrugging, Micolash spoke up. “A lot of things that the Pthumerians did didn’t make sense.” He pointed out, as he began actually pointing at her. “You of all people should know this, Ami. You’ve been borderline obsessed with those old ruins.”  
  
  
    She gave a grunt, staring her tea down some more. “I know, but… Your theory is just as outlandish.” Ami glanced up at him for a moment as she spoke. “Even if the Pthumerians did in fact summon the Great One’s, there’s nothing we’ve uncovered so far that suggests how they did it.”  
  
  
    He chuckled, leaning forward onto his knees again as he had earlier. “That’s why I’m counting on you to figure it out, you are the one who’s obsessed with those ruins.”  
  
  
    “ _Borderline_ obsessed, Micolash.” Ami smiled a bit, trying not to let out the soft chuckles she was holding back. “You said so yourself not even five minutes ago.”  
  
  
    “Actually,” Micolash started, before quickly taking the last few drinks of his tea. “The first time I said it was before I had even poured my tea, it’d be closer to ten now. You took your time, absorbing all of that knowledge again.” As he set his cup down, Ami went to pour him a new one, but stopped as he gestured that he was fine for the moment.  
  
  
    “Ten minutes… My, we’ve been in here for quite awhile then.” She noted, and for the first time in what must have been hours, glanced out one of the windows lining the wall behind Micolash. “The moon’s rising. It’s got to be at least nine o'clock.”  
  
  
    Reaching into his students robe, Micolash pulled out a small pocket watch. “Actually, it’s closer to ten… Funny how I just said that too.” He mused, placing the instrument back into his inner pocket. “We should probably be heading for our beds soon. We managed to drink at least a cup each.” He motioned to the tea, still plenty warm in it’s pot.  
  
  
    She took a drink from her cup, savouring the taste of the oddly sweet, yet bitter tasting liquid. “That’s not much.” She pointed out. “We should both have at least another cup.”  
  
  
    Micolash sighed, glancing out the window behind him as well. “It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve wasted tea. And we both know it’s practically more available than water here.”  
  
  
    Another sip, followed by another, finishing her tea quite quickly. Ami giggled at him, placing her cup back on it’s appointed saucer. “Even with the lake right outside?”  
  
  
    He held his arms out to his sides, shrugging slightly as a small smirk overtook him. “When was the last time you saw someone in Byrgenwerth drinking plain water?” He jested, draping his extended arms onto the back of the rather short couch as he once again leaned back, bowing out a puff of air to try and blow a piece of his dark, curly hair from his eyes.  
  
  
    “Ok, you’ve got a point there. But that doesn’t mean we should just dump it out either.” Leaning forward, she began to pour herself another cup of the debated liquid. “Besides, it wouldn’t be the first time we’ve fallen asleep in here over a pot of tea.”  
  
  
    Micolash rolled his eyes, half in play as the memories crept back into his mind. “And I had a sore back for days after.” He paused, sitting upright again and tucking the rogue strands of hair back behind his ear. “Ami, we both know these couches aren’t all that comfortable when compared to our beds.” He drawled, his pale blue eyes staring at her plainly.  
  
  
    “They’re comfortable to sit on, not to sleep on.” She corrected, blowing at the steam that rose off of her cup before setting it down on the table. “Now shush and have some more tea. We’re not wasting an almost full pot.” Ami grabbed ahold of the teapots handle, while her other hand held Micolash’s saucer and cup as the liquid easily flowed into it.  
  
  
    “Look, I’m even pouring it for you.” She teased, holding out the nearly filled ceramic for him with a smile as she set the pot down once again.  
  
  
    Micolash smiled in return, carefully grabbing the saucer from her and bringing the cup to his lips. He gingerly sipped at his tea before pulling away, apparently still a little too hot out of the pot for him to handle. “Thank you. I suppose I’m trapped here now, aren’t I?”  
  
  
    She nodded, watching as he returned his cup to the saucer he held. “Until I think we’ve drank enough to warrant leaving at least.” Picking up her cup from its place, she leaned forward, holding it out across the table. “The night is still young, we can last a bit longer.”  
  
  
    He scoffed, outstretching his arm towards hers. Cup in hand, he gently clinked them together. “I suppose we have stayed for far later before… I think two in the morning was our latest endeavor into the books here.”  
  
  
    A small smirk overcame Ami, pausing from her drinking to speak. “You’re not wrong. It was well past midnight that time. I don’t want to stay that long this time though.” She clarified, before beginning to work on her still hot drink again.  
  
  
    Many a thing was conversed that night, as the moon rose ever higher above the grand lake outside. By the time the two left the building together, the moon was well above them, bathing all of Byrgenwerth in a soft, pale glow. The oil lamps on the pathways were running low, but one would not need them to traverse the grounds of the campus tonight.  
  
  
    With the full moon on full display and not a cloud in sight, the two friends stood and talked for awhile longer, just outside of the main building. Eventually, Micolash pulled out his pocket watch yet again. Midnight it read, and as much as neither of them wanted to separate, they could not deny the drowsiness beginning to over take them both.  
  
  
    “I suppose this is where we part then.” He spoke, as the two of them opened the gate leading to the courtyard, beginning along the path through the small garden.  
  
  
    “It would seem so.” Ami stopped where the path diverged. Along one leading to the west, was the lecture building and the men’s dormitories. The east was a library and the women's dorms. The path she would be taking.  
  
  
    Before she could say goodbye however, her companion spoke up. “Do you have your key this time?” He asked, trying not to smirk as she obviously became flustered at the mention.  
  
  
    “Yes, I have my key!” She retorted, not actually mad, but embarrassed by her friend nonetheless. A slight pout overcame her. “It was one time.”  
  
  
    He chuckled. “Twice.” He patted her shoulder, not able to help the slight laughter that escaped him at her reaction. “It was twice, Ami.”  
  
  
    She felt her cheeks burning up a bit, and looked to the ground. “It’s not my fault I forgot it on my bed and needed to stay with you for the night…” She paused, and cut her friend off as he went to speak again. “Ok, maybe that is my fault. But I thought I had it both times!”  
  
  
    His laughter dying down, Micolash sighed and let his hand rest on her shoulder. He tightened his grip slightly, trying to reassure her. “I know, Ami. But I want to make sure you’re not going to have to walk the entire campus in order to find somewhere to sleep.” He looked her in the eyes, holding out his other, open hand as he gestured to her. “You know what I want, show me.”  
  
  
    The initial embarrassment dying down, Ami searched through her pockets for several moments. A panicked expression took hold of her, as she realized she could not find the key to her room. She looked to her friend, who had an eyebrow raised at her. Redoubling her efforts as her hands flew through her pockets, Ami felt her palm brush against a small, rectangular object made of wood. Her fingertips felt the small metal ring, and the key.  
  
  
    She let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, as the fearful expression faded from her face. “I’ve got it.” She spoke, bringing out the key for him to see. “I thought I didn’t for a moment there…”  
  
  
    “Evidently so.” He said, a worrisome frown turning into the slightest upward tug at the corners of his lips. “At least I know I won’t have to share my bed with you again.”  
  
  
    She felt the need to smirk, but resisted the urge to roll her eyes at him as she did so. “You make it sound like I take up so much room.” She poked his arm playfully. “Besides, why are you complaining now?”  
  
  
    His hands were now in his pockets, as he tried to keep them warm from the cool wind that was beginning to blow. “Because I know I don’t have you share with you this time. And we both know those beds aren’t made for two people, Ami. They're barely made for one...”  
  
  
    “You’re not wrong, but you tend to really spread out in your sleep. But they’re still comfier that the couches when it comes to sleeping.”  
  
  
    Her statement rang true, as once again he recalled how sore his back felt after their last time spending a night in the loft. “Speaking of rest, I do believe we were about to part ways?”  
  
  
    She nodded, having forgotten why they were out here in the first place. “Right, it slipped my mind.” She turned to the path she was to head down, but looked back and raised her hand. “Goodnight Micolash, rest well, ok?”  
  
  
    A soft smile graced him, also raising his hand in farewell. “Have a goodnight, Ami. You as well.” He stayed, lingering in the crossroads for a few moments, watching as she walked down the well defined dirt pathway leading from the woods towards the lake. Now content with knowing that she had nothing more to say tonight, Micolash turned on his heel and began in the opposite direction.  
  
  
    The night was no longer young, and the lamps at Byrgenwerth burned low as they both departed from the courtyard. The full moon was on display, and with not a cloud in sight, the view of the moonlight shimmering on the lakes surface was captivating. Unknown to either of them, they had both stopped as they trudged along their paths. Pausing for a few moments to stare in wonder at the beautiful sight before them one last time that night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No Warnings Apply This Chapter. Enjoy Reading!

When the dead Great One had washed ashore in the fishing hamlet, everything had changed. For the first time since the ancient Pthumerians, the people of Yharnam were graced with seeing a Great One, an eldritch being of higher knowledge that supposedly lived in the cosmos, and thought to be something of a god. Of course, this was greatly hidden from the general public of Yharnam. The masses didn’t need to know about this, it was something that would just bring too many questions from them, ones without answer.  
  
  
    Or at least, answers not yet found.  
  
  
    Sitting outside the main building, Micolash was currently transfixed on a journal. He had sketched the Great One earlier after conversing with some of the people that had been sent by the college to look into it.  
  
  
    Being so absorbed into his work, he didn’t immediately notice someone talking to him. That was, until he got a poke to the side of his head. “Hmm?” He looked over rather drearily, seemingly unhappy to have been pulled from his work. That was, until he noticed who exactly it was that had done so.  
  
  
    Micolash’s expression shifted into one of excitement, as he grinned widely. “Ami, Ami, you must sit with me! I’ve got much to share with you!” Giddy like a child, he shuffled nearly all the way over on the bench to make room for his friend to sit next to him.  
  
  
    “Were you the one harassing the people sent to look into the Great One?” She asked, a slight smirk adorning her as she sat down next to him.  
  
  
    A couple of deep chuckles escaped him. “I’d hardly call my questions harassment. Just simple curiosity.” Noting the gap between them, and how small and somewhat messy his writing was, he scooted a bit closer to Ami and smiled, holding his journal for her to see. “Look here now. I’ve made notes from the information I managed to gather.”  
  
  
    She skimmed through his writing, being quite used to reading his rather unique penmanship. “‘Kos’, what is that exactly?”  
  
  
    “Ah, Kos… Or some say, Kosm. It’s the name of the Great One, although the agents sent to the fishing hamlet haven’t fully agreed on which one to call it really.” He said, flipping a page over to reveal the sketch he had made from the descriptions. “I tried to piece together how Kos might look, given what I could get out of people.”  
  
  
    The drawing looked strange to say the least. It was most certainly a rough sketch at best, but the general idea was still clear. A large, flat body with fin like sides, leading up and into that seemed like a hybrid between that of a fish and a woman. The creature seemed to lack legs, and given how Micolash had evidently put some effort into the facial detail, that must have been something that was mentioned repeatedly by those he had asked.  
  
  
    “It looks like a fish woman…” Ami gave the drawing a funny look, not entirely sure what to make of this supposed Great One that had washed up dead on the shore of a village. “I suppose this means that Great One’s really can die permanently, huh?”  
  
  
    He shrugged, closing his journal as he did. “There’s no evidence of that yet. These Great One’s are godly beings, Ami. They may lose their physical bodies, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that their conscious dies as well.” He patted the back of his book with the pen he held a few times, as he smiled to his friend. “After all, despite Kos being dead, apparently the villagers were worshiping it, and they had transformed-”  
  
  
    “Transformed?” She asked, eyes widening slightly as she cut him off. “What do you mean, ‘Transformed’?”  
  
  
    “Exactly what I said. They changed, Ami. They weren’t entirely human anymore.” He opened his journal back up, and flipped through a number of pages before settling on one, his crude writing scribbled all over the paper in a haphazard manner. “Look, I wrote it down. ‘Villagers transformed, not human.’ That’s what those who were there said!”  
  
  
    Ami frowned. “You’re only got one quote…”  
  
  
    He sighed, pressing his fingers to the bridge of his nose. “That’s not the point, Ami. The point is that even if I only got one person to fess up about this, it’s still incredible! What exactly could have done that to them?”  
  
  
    Micolash’s expression lit up in joy, as he began flipping through pages like a madman. “Oh, I have a theory on that actually!” He gleefully exclaimed, finding his desired page and holding it out for her to read, despite him reading it aloud regardless. “Consider what I said earlier, that although their physical bodies may die, the consciousness of the Great One’s live on outside of their bodies." He paused, giving her a glance to make sure she was following. “Given that the villagers were worshiping Kos’s dead body, there must have been _something_ that had made them transform. And while yes, the people who were sent did apparently find parasites in the body of Kos, there’s no evidence to support that they are responsible.”  
  
  
    Ami raised an eyebrow. “Are you trying to tell me that Kos’s conscious, separated from its deceased body, transformed the villagers?” This was getting both very interesting, and very outlandish quite fast. But then again, when considering what the Great One’s supposedly were, it was obvious that Micolash wasn’t content to throw plausible ideas away.  
  
  
    “Yes, yes exactly!” He rested a hand on her knee, squeezing it gently. “Kos could have transformed the villagers as a way to thank them for not desecrating its body.” His voice lowered somewhat, a grin beginning to overtake him yet again. “Think about it, if we can prove that one’s mind can persist after death, completely separate from the body… Who knows what we could discover. That kind of existence would allow one to endlessly obtain more and more knowledge and insight into the world.”  
  
  
    Ami giggled, resting a hand over top of his. “Your mind is running away with you again. Your ideas are just as fantastical, yet intriguing as ever.” She smiled, raising an eyebrow at him. “Some of the stuff you spout off when you’re excited… It really is amusing to listen to.”  
  
  
    Micolash gazed at her with a now dull look. “When you put it like that it sounds like you’re mocking me.” He stated rather bluntly, his grin turning into a sharp frown.  
  
  
    Shaking her head, Ami spoke up. “No, no! I’m not trying to mock you. I’m just saying that you always find the most outlandish and interesting ideas and run off with them.”  She gingerly squeezed his hand to reassure him. “I like hearing you go wild with your thoughts like this. It’s what makes you… _You,_ I guess.”  
  
  
    Sighing slightly, the corners of his lips tugged upwards. He glanced back to his journal, his messy handwriting scrawled out all over the page. “You’re the only person who actually listens to me when I start to ramble like this.”  
  
  
    “Well, you're hard to follow sometimes. But I’m used to you.” Her hand returned to her side, and she nudged her companions arm lightly. “How about we go up to the loft? I can put some tea on downstairs by the fireplace, and you can scribble down some more of your notes.”  
  
  
    He hummed, staring forward at the lake for a moment as if in thought. It only took him a moment, but soon he glanced to the side, looking at her with a mischievous expression. “Do I get to try and explain more of them as we drink?” He asked, a grin spreading out ear to ear as he spoke.  
  
  
    Ami chuckled, and patted his shoulder. “Honestly, I’d love to hear more.” Standing up, she locked her fingers together and stretched her arms high above her head. “I’d suggest that we get a move on that tea as well, unless you want a repeat of last week.” She jested as she let her arms drop back down, knowing plenty well that the pot would be finished long before the moon would rise.  
  
  
    Micolash rolled his eyes, taking out his pocket watch. “It’s only just past noon. Unless you’re making five pots of tea, I doubt we’ll be here past four.” The expression that soon overtook her face had him questioning to himself if he should have said that, considering the devilish grin she adopted.  
  
  
    “Is that a challenge?” She asked, giving Micolash a rather smug look as he sighed and gently batted at her arm.  
  
  
    “No, that is not a challenge, Ami.” Deciding to tease back a bit, he got up and started walking away towards the eastern entrance of the building. “Now unless you really want to be here until the moon’s out, you should hurry up.” He stopped talking for a second, adopting a mischievous grin of his own as he glanced back at her. “Or I’ll hide the teapot on you.”  
  
  
    Not needing to hear anymore, Ami quickly caught up to her good friend, and laughed with him as he poked fun at her haste. The two of them returned to their spots in the eastern loft, noting that the building was oddly quiet considering the time. Perhaps due to people likely being more attracted to the library and lecture hall as a result of what had been discovered.  
  
  
    Ami left her spot for a few moments to go and retrieve the hot water from downstairs, but soon returned and had the tea steeping. However, instead of going back to her spot after she had returned the kettle downstairs, Ami came back up and sat down right next to Micolash. “So, what do you have to share?”  
  
  
    Micolash didn’t need anything more to begin talking and flipping through his journal. An eager  smile once again returning to him. "So, going back to Kos and the village from earlier, and ignoring my whole hypothesis on living outside of a body, I have another theory in which I want to explain."  
  
  
    She nodded. "Go right on ahead then." Mindlessly, she began fiddling with her teacup as she listened to him speak. It was something that helped her listen for long periods of time, and to keep herself from fidgeting constantly.  
  
  
    "Regardless of if Kos is alive or dead, there's another thing I have been wondering about for quite awhile. Specifically, how the old Pthumerians could have contacted the Great One's." He pointed to an already open page in his notebook. "Not only are the dungeons strangely guarded to this day, and expanding on top of that, but that must mean there's something down there of importance to them... Something linked directly to the Great One's."  
  
  
    Ami smirked, poking his cheek. "Wow, took you all that time to figure that out? This is exactly what I've been going on about for weeks!"  
  
  
    "No, no. I'm expanding on your work, now let me finish..." He cleared his throat, starting again from where he left off. "The Pthumerians, while obviously hiding something down at the bottom of their catacomb other than just the Old Blood we've retrieved, could also have another purpose for constructing their maze like structures even now." He leaned in, excitement gleaming in his eyes. "What if they're hiding a Great One down there?"  
  
  
    This was where he had lost her. "I'm sorry... What?" Ami was confused, that much was for certain. She eyed her friend awkwardly, and raised an eyebrow. "They contacted the Great One's... With a Great One?"  
  
  
    "No, not exactly. I'm thinking that they're building these ruins because they are trying to protect a Great One from the world, from us! Who knows how it got there, but that they might have one to begin with is incredible!" He chuckled, draping his arm around his colleagues shoulders. "Just think about the possibilities if this is true! Ami, if we can recover the Great One they're hiding, then maybe we can use it to unravel how they got it in the first place, and summon our own!"  
  
  
    She scoffed at him, playfully poking his exposed side as she spoke. "Your grand theory is that if we can capture the Great One the old Pthumerians are hiding, then we can figure out how they came into contact with the Great One's in the first place?" She reached up, ruffling his hair up a bit, and he ducked down a bit out of reflex.  
  
  
    "Micolash, your ideas are getting more and more out there every time we talk…” Ami paused for a moment, but quickly realized that might not have been a good idea. He had already pointed out her word choice earlier, and this was arguably worse. “Not that I mind, I enjoy your outlandish theories!” She quickly added, and shot him a smile. “But what would make you think that to being with? You _always_ have some form of proof, no matter how small."  
  
  
    His answer, although infuriatingly short, was quite simple. "The slugs." He crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow as if daring her to reject his evidence.  
  
  
    "The Pearl Slugs? Really?" Once again, the more knowledgeable of the two on this subject sighed, frowning slightly as she rubbed her forehead. "Micolash, the slugs are there because the Pthumerians had contacted the Great One’s before."  
  
  
    He leaned back, closing his journal and setting it beside him. "No, you're not getting the point. Regardless of them just being signs of past contact, there's one very big problem that everyone's been overlooking this whole time."  
  
  
    Now this piqued her interest. "What problem exactly are you talking about?"  
  
  
    Micolash sat upright again, quite quickly in fact. Before answering, he reached over to the table and grabbed a saucer with a teacup sitting on it quite snugly. He poured himself a cup of tea, watching the steam for a moment before setting it down and turning to Ami. "They're still around."  
  
  
    He wasn't wrong, but that he pointed out something so obvious made her feel like she had mentally run into a brick wall. "Yeah, of course they're still alive… That’s what you mean, right? They're animals, Micolash. They eat, and have offspring..."  
  
  
    "But have we ever seen them have young?" The way he talked lent his voice power and enthusiasm. He was clearly passionate about the topic at hand, and the way he smiled with that glint in his eyes showed that just as well as his tone did.  
  
  
    Strangely enough, his question struck a chord in her. She began thinking back to all of the time she had spent caring for the slugs, not questioning much about them. They were slugs that had been classified as Kin, something that wasn't a Great One, but connected to the cosmos nonetheless. Placing the teacup she had been fiddling with down, Ami stood up and walked downstairs. She carefully grabbed the object she desired and went right back up, as if in a transfixed state of confusion. She set a small glass tank down on the table. In it, a small number of the aforementioned Pearl Slugs.  
  
  
    "You're right..." The words seemed to tumble from her, as if she had been hit with the realization of what this meant all at once. "We've never seen them mate, or produce offspring. _Ever._ They barely eat as it is, even though we give them plenty of food..."  
  
  
    Micolash smirked. "Of course they don't eat much. They're Kin. Despite this being common knowledge, it's something that everyone seems to forget. Pearl Slugs, while just slugs, we have proven to also be Kin." He leaned in again, as if trying to rub it in a little as he spoke in a low, soft tone. "And Kin don't reproduce."  
  
  
    Ami felt like slamming her head against the table. How could everyone have overlooked such an important detail? "But they keep popping up in the ruins, regardless of if that area has been explored or not..."  
  
  
    "And while how Kin are initially made is still a mystery, we do know that they come into being when there is the presence of a Great One." Softly, he rested a hand on her knee again, gently squeezing it to try and ground her from her obviously shocked state. It wasn't really all that far off from how he had reacted when he had finally put the pieces together. But he wanted to make sure that she understood through her daze. "And for them to keep popping up like this, I doubt anyone can deny what I've said."  
  
  
    Slowly, she nodded. He was right, there was no reason for these slugs to keep popping up in the ruins that the prospectors were delving into. "And no one’s noticed because they've all just been trying not to go mad as of late..."  
  
  
     "Exactly." He started, and began to speak in a grand tone, one that fitted him rather well considering the realization that he had just helped his friend make. "In the fight to preserve their lives and sanity to delve again, everyone has been overlooking the biggest hint we've had at the Pthumerians not only having previously contacted a Great One, but also currently have one among them!"  
  
  
    Ami buried her face in her hands, letting out a rather long groan. "How could I be so stupid?” She immediately felt a wave of shame wash over her, and tried hiding her face even further in her palms. “All this time, it's been the slugs?!"  
  
  
    "Hey now." He started talking, but was cut off briefly by another long groan of defeat from Ami. "You're letting that pessimism get the better of you again." Frowning, Micolash removed his hand from her knee and began rubbing her back, his voice growing soft and comforting. "Just because you weren't the one who came up with the idea, doesn't mean you're not intelligent. You're still partially responsible."  
  
  
    "What do you mean 'partially'?" Her words were muffled, hands muting the sound of her voice some. "I had nothing to do with this, you're the one who realized it." She honestly just felt stupid, and ashamed. What he had pointed out was the most obvious thing. She was supposed to be an expert in this area of study, and yet she had completely overlooked it.  
  
  
    Sighing, Micolash rubbed her back some more. "You're the one that helped me piece it together.” His tone perked up slightly, but his voice remained low and soothing. “You may not have had a direct hand in doing so, but you're still responsible for helping me. If you hadn't become borderline obsessed with the Pthumerians, I may very well have never given anything about the dungeons a second thought at all."  
  
  
    They stayed like that for awhile, Ami trying her best to warn off the negative thoughts swirling in her head. What he said made sense to her. He really hadn't cared for those old ruins much. The only thing that had gotten him sucked into them was her fascination with them. Eventually, she began to feel more numb than frustrated, and uncovered her face.  
  
  
    Smiling a little bit as she stopped hiding, he simply let his hand rest in place on her back. "There are more than just you and I here too. We aren't the only students in Byrgenwerth, Ami. None of them noticed either."  
  
  
    Realizing that he wasn't wrong on them being only a small fraction of the student body, her mood lifted somewhat. "You're right..." She smiled back at him, and though it was a soft one, it was still visibly there. "Thank you, Micolash."  
  
  
    "Think nothing of it." He replied, clasping her shoulder. He was glad to see her beginning to recover from that little dip in her mood. "You're my friend, of course I'm going to pick you up when you belittle yourself." He reached over to the teapot with his free hand, and held it out in front of them, his soft and gentle smile still present. “Shall we relax some?”  
  
  
    Although they did say they would chat until they ran out of tea, the two of them ended up going much longer than that. After their little revelation however, the two had moved onto much lighter topics. Micolash was the one who insisted that they do so, likely so Ami would stop beating herself up about the Pearl Slugs.  
  
  
    Eventually though, they began to take notice of time passing around them. It was beginning to become dark out, and Micolash raised an eyebrow as he realized the dim light filtering through the windows behind them, and checked his pocket watch.  
  
  
    “Hmm. It would appear we’ve lost track of time yet again...” Seven o’clock it read, far later than they had intended to be here.  
  
  
    Ami couldn’t help but chuckle. “We seem to be doing that a lot lately, huh? I suppose we’ve both just had some more free time on our hands to talk more.”  
  
  
    He extended his arms to his side, shrugging in his signature way. “You’re not wrong. But I doubt we’ll have much free time anymore, considering what has just transpired.” He had a point. With the discovery of the Great One, the entirety of Byrgenwerth would be buzzing about for the next month in all likelihood.  
  
  
    “Yeah… I suppose we should enjoy this while we can.”  
  
  
    He hummed, glancing to her from the corner of his vision. “I doubt there’s much left to enjoy. Tomorrow will likely be the beginning of endless work for the majority of us here.”  
  
  
    The two called it a night soon after. If Micolash was right, then they’d have nothing but busy days ahead of them. It was best that they both get as much rest as possible in preparation.  
  
  
    Little did they know, another group was still up even as they entered their respective dormitories to retire for the night. A group whose discussions would threaten to undo everything that the entirety of the college had worked towards. Then again, nothing lasts forever. At least, not yet. That was what the college was working towards, of course. But not even a grand institute such as Byrgenwerth was immune to the flow of time, and the threads of fate had already begun to unweave the very foundation and principles that it had been built upon.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No Warnings Apply This Chapter. Enjoy Reading!

Closing his door for the last time, Micolash sighed and bent down to pick up the stack of books he had deemed important enough to bring with him. He couldn’t bring everything of course, he couldn’t carry it all. Not that he owned much stuff to begin with, but he wanted to bring as many of the books from the library with him as he could, which meant that he was currently carrying a stack of books that went up to the middle of his chest.  
  
  
    “Are you sure you’re going to be alright carrying all of that?” Ami asked, as she began packing even more books into a satchel. “I could probably fit a few of those in here.”  
  
  
    One of the corners of his lips curled down for a moment as he contemplated her offer. She already had six other satchels packed with books he wanted to bring, and yet she had insisted upon packing a seventh. “Only if you let me carry this one.” He said as he knelt down, letting go of the precarious stack of books he had been hanging onto. Even he didn’t know where she had gotten this many spare satchels from, but he did know that two of them were his.  
  
  
    She sighed, but nodded in agreement nonetheless. “Alright, fine. But I’m carrying the other ones, alright?”  
  
  
    Micolash glanced behind her, noting that the satchels of books they had were far from the last of their luggage. “Are you positive you’ll be able to carry all of that?” There were two shelved back frames, and plenty of chord to go with them. Three leather suitcases also sat off to the side, having already been packed with as much of their clothing as they could stuff into them. A fourth one was lying open, waiting to be filled with whatever they could stuff into it. “It’s quite a lot of luggage…”  
  
  
    Noticing how her friends voice trailed off, and that his tone seemed to indicate that he was mildly concerned for her, Ami laughed to try and lighten the mood. “Micolash, please. I’m more concerned about you, you’re not exactly a built man.”  
  
  
    He sighed, knowing that he couldn’t exactly argue that point. “I’m a scholar, Ami. And a gangly one at that. What do you expect of me?” His question was in half jest, and the light smirk that overcame him showed it.  
  
  
    “Well, certainly not defined abdominal muscles.”  
  
  
    They both had a good chuckle at that, the two of them letting go for a moment. A group of male students passed them in the hallway, giving them both funny looks as they left the building, also carrying all that they could carry of their possessions.  
  
  
    After the two of them calmed down some, they began packing the last of the books they had grabbed from the Byrgenwerth Library into the remaining satchel and suitcase. And as much as she didn’t want to, Ami had caved in on splitting her and Micolash’s luggage more evenly between them.  
  
  
    Soon after deciding that, they began stacking the satchels and what books they couldn’t fit into them onto the back frames, tying them securely with the chord they had.  
  
  
    Ami had made sure to spit the load in what she thought was a fair manner. Micolash would carry two suitcases, and one back frame with two satchels secured to it and the majority of loose books. In the meantime, she would carry two suitcases, a back frame with four satchels secured to it, as many of the remaining loose books as they could fit after that. She would also have another satchel slung over her shoulder. Just because she had agreed to split the load further didn’t mean she was going to let him carry more than she thought he could handle.  
  
  
    As they geared up to leave, he eyed her slinging on her back frame. “You’re sure you can carry that?” He asked, a slight amount of worry glinting in his eyes.  
  
  
    She nodded to him, grabbing the spare satchel and slinging it onto her right shoulder as she was squatted down on the ground. “Yep! I’ve got this.” Although the load on her back was indeed heavy, Ami didn’t want to slack off about this. She knew Micolash wasn’t the most physically fit man. Neither was she, but she at least had enough lifting power in her legs to be able to support herself with all of this weight so far.  
  
  
    He slipped his own frame on and stood up. “You’re certain?” He inquired again, crossing his arms and frowning down at her as she went to grab her designated suitcases. Which, of course, were the heavier ones.  
  
  
    Ami sighed, and shot him a grin. “Yes, I’m sure.” She said again and stood upright. She had done so a tad to quickly however, and stumbled backwards a bit. Thankfully, Micolash had noticed her balance tipping, and grabbed onto her to stop her from teetering over too far. The grin that had briefly faded as she had nearly fallen over had now surfaced again, though this time it appeared rather sheepishly.  
  
  
    “Alright, you’re not carrying that.” Micolash, after making sure she wouldn’t fall over if he stopped supporting her, let go and grabbed the satchel she had slung onto her shoulder. “This extra weight is throwing you off balance…”  
  
  
    She rolled her eyes, but let him take the extra satchel nonetheless. “Fine, but you’ve gotta do something for me first.”  
  
  
    “And what would that be?” Equally as curious and confused as to what else could need to be done, he raised an eyebrow at her, his head tilting slightly.  
  
  
    “Tie up your shoelaces before we go.”  
  
  
    Micolash stared blankly at her for a few moments, blinking a few times before looking down to his shoes. Indeed, they were untied, the strings that normally bound them to his feet pooled limply at the sides of his shoes. “Oh.” Was all he said, before kneeling down to remedy the problem with his footwear. “I hadn’t noticed.”  
  
  
    Scoffing, Ami took the chance to carefully lean forward and ruffle his hair up a bit, hearing him audibly groan in mock annoyance as she did so. He likely would have rolled his eyes at her if he wasn’t focused on tying his shoes. “You’re such a dork sometimes.” She chuckled, patting his head once or twice before standing upright again.  
  
  
    “Maybe so.” Micolash stood up again, grabbing the suitcases he was to carry, one in each hand. He smiled at her, and out of reflex moved his arm to nudge her out of habit, but stopped upon the realization that his hand was occupied. Instead, he gently tapped her leg with the suitcase he held, careful not to tip her off balance. “But you’re equally as much of one as I am.”  
  
  
    With that, the two of them set off, leaving the dormitories in the west and heading for the main building of the campus. It was early afternoon, by the time they would get to the staircase leading up to the Cathedral Ward in Yharnam, it would likely be mid evening. As they came to the path leading into the woods ahead, the duo stopped and glanced back behind them at the proud institute of Byrgenwerth.  
  
  
    Or rather, the formerly proud institute. About six weeks ago, the same night that the research team had come back from examining Kos, there was a fight between two of the higher ups in the college.  
  
  
    Master Willem, the head of the college of Byrgenwerth, was an older gentleman who liked to keep to himself in his rocking chair. He, as well as everyone else at Byrgenwerth, strived to find a way to not only make contact with, but learn from and ascent to a godlike state with the Great One’s. To further evolve humanity beyond what humans were currently capable of mentally. He had an apprentice, Laurence, who was a young man that Willem had taught well. Or so he thought.  
  
  
    After the discovery of the Old Blood in the tombs of the Pthumerians beneath Yharnam, Master Willem had attempted to make one thing very clear to his students. That the only thing that would come from consuming the Old Blood would be undoing what they had all worked towards, and those that believed it would reveal the path ascension would be branded traitors and cast out from Byrgenwerth. To make sure he got his message through, he had asked the entirety of the college to heed his words. “We are born of the blood, made men by the blood, undone by the blood. Our eyes are yet to open… Fear the old blood.”  
  
  
    Using what the college had discovered of the Great One’s, Master Willem had come to an interesting conclusion rather recently. They needed more eyes. Consuming the Old Blood would do nothing but ruin everything that had worked towards, as evidenced by the presence of great beasts in the labyrinths of the Pthumerians, tainted by the Old Blood. Eyes meanwhile, would hold the key to communing with these apparent gods, as some depictions of them in the ruins below Yharnam included many, many eyes in a symbolic manner. The use of eyes however was uncertain, and although theories had been conceived, no one in the college really had a chance to test any of them before now.  
  
  
    This was where Laurence had diverged from Willem. While his Master believed that eyes were the necessary catalyst that was missing, Laurence believed that the Old Blood fit better into the puzzle, as he could not deny the potential it held due to its invigorating and healing properties. Despite the evidence suggesting that some of the ancient Pthumerians had turned into beasts from the Old Blood, he fiercely believed that consuming the blood in communion and etching it upon their minds would reveal the true path to ascension.  
  
  
    The night that the researchers of Kos had returned, Laurence had an argument with Willem. He wanted to make use of the Old Blood, believing that he was in the right. Naturally, Master Willem had disagreed, and warned him of the consequences of consuming the apparent blood of the gods. Nothing but a beastly idiocy would become of him and all who attempted to utilize it, making waste of their brilliant lives.  
  
  
    They fought long into the night, and their heated debate had ended when Laurence left abruptly. He had later returned, his bags packed, bidding his old teacher farewell.  
  
  
    Six weeks had passed, and news had spread quickly. The Healing Church had declared the entirety of Byrgenwerth to be off-limits to the public, and the knowledge in which it contained to be forbidden. The Healing Church itself was a new institution in which Laurence had founded with those who he had managed to convince to leave with him that night. Apparently, they had found a way to not only control the Old Blood’s beastly scourge, but use it for healing properties on the sickly and weak.  
  
  
    This kind of discovery was revolutionary, and had quickly launched the organization forward as the main power of Yharnam. The people practically worshipped them, and some outright did, praising their work and discoveries as that of a gods. Yharnam itself benefited as well, and the entirety of the city had been propelled into a new age of healing, wealth, and prosperity.  
  
  
    Micolash sighed, gazing upon the main building from the crossroads with his friend. This institution was everything to the two of them. They had met here, in the very loft they so often had tea in whilst they chatted. A distant look of sadness glinted in his eyes, and he shut them in solemness. A silence settled between them, lasting several moments before he opened his eyes again.  
  
  
    “Do you think we’ll ever see it again?”  
  
  
    His voice had snapped Ami from her thoughts, as she jumped slightly when he spoke after sharing such a long silence. Nevertheless, she inquired further. “The loft?”  
  
  
    He nodded, eyes glued to the building in which their companionship had started. “Where two brilliant minds met.” He turned his head to look at her, and he smiled, setting down a suitcase to place a hand on her shoulder.  
  
  
    She felt her cheeks flush a bit at that comment, and bashfully smiled back at him. “Man, Micolash, you’re really singing high praises of me right now.” She too set down one of her suitcases, and playfully nudged him in the ribs. “We both know you’re the smarter one here.”  
  
  
    “There again with that pessimism.” He sighed, only half in jest, and fully turned to face her, hand leaving her shoulder as he instead raised it to point at her. “You really do enjoy selling yourself short, don’t you?” He smirked, poking her nose just as she went to reply.  
  
  
    “Micolash.” She whined, and gently batted his hand away. “You know I don’t do it intentionally.” Ami let out a small huff, rolling her eyes at him.  
  
  
    His smirk only grew wider as he grabbed the suitcase he had previously set down. “Yes, I know.” Micolash turned on his heel, feeling the pit in his stomach begin to grow as he faced the path that lie ahead of them. “But what else are friends good for?” His voice wavered slightly, cracking at the tail end of his speech. He was nervous, but who wouldn’t be? This place was all that he had known for years.  
  
  
    He felt something come into contact with his arm, and glanced down. Ami’s hand was holding it. Not too tightly, but enough to get the message across as she squeezed it gently. She was anxious too. He was not alone.  
  
  
    Although he could feel himself hesitate, he took a step forward, her hand letting go as he did. That step was followed quite quickly by another, and another after that. The pace had been set for their trek, and he looked over his shoulder at his companion as he continued ahead, away from Byrgenwerth. He watched as she knelt down to grab her suitcase, and quickly scuttled after him, trying to match his pace.  
  
  
    “For support.” She replied once the gap between them had been closed, and smiled happily up at him. A gesture that was returned to her with just as much warmth.  
  
  
    The days of Byrgenwerth were gone now. As the main gates to the college closed for the last time, they both knew that a chapter in their lives was ending. But with every end is a new beginning. A chance for a fresh start, and to build upon one's past experience.  
  
  
    As Ami walked beside him through the old forest path, there was a warm feeling settling within him that Micolash could not deny. Nor did he particularly want to. Glancing to his companion out of the corner of his eye, Micolash confirmed his suspicions as his chest warmed further, and he smiled at the realization he made.  
  
  
    He felt an undeniable sense of comfort being at his friends side.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No Warnings Apply This Chapter. Enjoy Reading!

Shaking the paper in his hands to keep it from bending backwards on him, Micolash sighed quietly. His feet were propped up on a small rectangular table, crossed at his ankles as he sat back on a couch, browsing the paper he held with interest.   
  
  
“You look quite comfortable.” The clinking of a teacup being returned to its saucer resounded in the room, followed shortly after by more, lighter ones as they were set down on the table. “Are you planning on sleeping like that?”   
  
  
“Very funny.” He muttered monotonously, still browsing the paper in front of him. “You and I both know just how much my back would appreciate that.”   
  
  
Ami chuckled. “About as much as the couches back in Byrgenwerth?”   
  
  
He nodded slowly, and gave a hum. It looked like he was about to close the paper he held, but instead he simply turned the page, his pale eyes still firmly fixated on the words in front of him.   
  
  
“You know, I made more than enough tea for both of us.” She began, and leaned forward, towards her friend from her position in an armchair off to the side of the table. “I can’t drink this whole pot myself.”   
  
  
Once again, just a hum escaped him, seemingly transfixed on the words printed into the page he held. “Let me finish this page first…” He murmured, clearly not focused on talking as his voice barely rose above that of a whisper.   
  
  
Ami shook her head, and leaned over to poke him in the arm. “You do realize you can drink and read, right?”   
  
  
A slow nod was all the response she got from Micolash, as his eyes darted about the paper, his brain busy with absorbing the words he read. A few moments later, after she had sat back down properly, he folded the newspaper and set it aside. “Now then.” He removed his feet from the table, sitting up properly. He took hold of a saucer and cup that his companion had already laid out for him, and looked to her, smiling warmly as he spoke. “Shall we?”   
  
  
She couldn’t help but chuckle slightly as he began pouring himself some of the tea. “Did you really put off having tea so we could hold a conversation?” Although her tone was lighthearted, this was a genuine question from her. And it would seem that he could tell given the puzzled look he was receiving.   
  
  
“Yes, is that really so bad?” He fired back, his smile beginning to morph ever so slightly into more of a smirk. “I enjoy our chats, you know this already don’t you?”   
  
  
She nodded before taking a drink of her tea, effectively silencing her for the moment as she sipped on the hot liquid. “Of course I know.” Ami set her cup down and got up, shifting over to sit on the couch next to her dear friend. “I just find it silly how you wanted to wait until you were drinking to talk.”   
  
  
He scoffed, and placed a hand on her head. For once he was the one to ruffle her hair, and he chuckled a bit at their reversal. “You used to engross yourself so much in the Pthumerian Records that you’d sit and read until the entire pot had gone cold, I don’t think you have much room to tease me here.”   
  
  
A bashful smile came over her, and she couldn’t help but chuckle along with  him. “Yeah, I know. That doesn’t mean I’m not gonna bug you about it though.” Still giggling a little, she swatted his hand from her hair and nudged him in the ribs.   
  
  
He grunted a bit, not entirely expecting it that time. “Of course it won’t. I know how stubborn you can be.”   
  
  
Rolling her eyes, Ami reached for her tea and took another drink. “Yeah, sadly me too.”   
  
  
Silence engulfed them for awhile, as they sat next to each other and drank their first cups. As they started on their second cups, that was when conversation picked up again.   
  
  
“I’m going to talk to Laurence tomorrow.”   
  
  
Ami paused, not quite sure if she had heard that right. She immediately set her tea back down, and looked to her friend with a bewildered expression. “You’re going to speak with Laurence? As in the founder of the Healing Church? That Laurence?”   
  
  
Giving a nod, Micolash took a sip of his tea. “Yes, Ami, that Laurence.”   
  
  
She grabbed onto his arm, clearly shocked at what he had said. “Laurence is one of the most powerful people in all of Yharnam, how are you so calm about this?!”   
  
  
He sighed, setting his saucer onto the table. “Because I need to be. I know how important of a man he is, I cannot afford to be nervous.” He could feel a slight headache coming on, and began rubbing his forehead. “I’m going to ask him about joining the Healing Church.”   
  
  
“It’s because we’re at a dead end right now, isn’t it?” She had calmed down some, beginning to understand where Micolash was coming from with this. Neither of them had a real job, they had just been going around the city assisting with whatever they could wherever they could for money. They were under the table workers, people that their employer for the day wouldn’t need to worry about writing up in their books. Of course, this lead to them being a bit short on cash, but at the very least they weren’t on the street.   
  
  
At first, Ami and Micolash had intended for this to simply last until they had a small chunk of savings and a place like they had now to stay in. After which, they would acquire actual jobs that paid more, something they could live off of. Instead, they found themselves hitting a dead end, not able to find a place to become properly employed. This was mostly due to them being former students of Byrgenwerth. Since the college had been declared forbidden ground, the students that had been displaced in the aftermath weren’t openly welcomed back into Yharnam. The Healing Church had closed them down, forcing them out. As such, the masses believed that the students of Byrgenwerth were hiding something, and not to be trusted, resulting in them currently lacking jobs.   
  
  
“Exactly.” He replied, a groan escaping him as his headache spiked for a few moments. His companion raised an eyebrow at him, but he gestured to his head, signaling that it was just his head hurting. “If I can get us work with the church, we should be fine.” Another spike of pain. He winced. “Word spreads fast in Yharnam, just being associated with someone like Laurence will help, even if we don’t get accepted.”   
  
  
She tried to smile, but found it awkward to do so considering he was in pain. “Here, let me get you something.” Standing up, Ami ventured into the small kitchen they had, but kept talking as she went about trying to help her friend. “So, are you going to ask for both of us then?”   
  
  
As he groaned yet again and shut his eyes, Micolash replied. “Yes, that is the plan.” He leaned back further into the upholstery, letting himself slink down and slide partially off of the couch. “I can’t have audience with our former colleague and not ask if you can join as well.” The sound of footsteps approaching drifted into his ears, and he could feel her sit down next to him again. Something was set on the table, evident by the noise of whatever it was made.   
  
  
“How thoughtful of you.” She teased, as she wrung out a cloth into a bowl of water.  She folded it into a rectangular shape and reached over to remove Micolash’s hand from his forehead.   
  
  
“Did you bring cold water?” He drawled, the pain obviously making it hard for him to put much effort into speaking. He was answered as the cool, damp cloth met his forehead, gently being pressed against him. Although the cool water would not get rid of his headache, it would certainly help take the edge off of the pain. Micolash hummed quietly in thanks, a smile gracing him as he pressed his hand onto the cloth as well with a bit more force.   
  
  
Although he could not see it, his friend nodded at him. “Of course, anytime.” Ami lightly patted the front of his shoulder, and began to silently work on her tea again. She thought it best to avoid talking for the moment, or until her friend felt better at least.   
  
  
What must have been an hour passed. Micolash had sat up to saturate the cloth in water a few times before wringing it out, only to lie back again and simply wait for his headache to pass. The tea was cooling, and Ami had consumed at least four cups, while her friends still sat on the table, unfinished.   
  
  
Eventually, she spoke up again, asking a question as he began to stir a bit. A likely indication that he was about to soak the cloth in the slowly warming water again. “Do you think sleeping it off would help?”   
  
  
He paused, letting the cloth in his thin fingers slid into the bowl of water. Although he did not answer immediately, it was clear from the hum that he gave, as well as the expression on his face that Micolash was considering his options. The cloth unfurled slightly from it’s shaped form, the edges seemingly dancing in the liquid in which they sat. He glanced to his friend. “I think I’ll be alright for now. The pain is more tolerable.”   
  
  
She reached over, hand clasping onto his shoulder and giving it a light squeeze. “That’s good.” Her other hand reached over, hand grabbing onto his seemingly forgotten saucer and lifting it between them. “Tea?”   
  
  
Micolash chuckled quietly, his hands leaving the cloth to soak and float about in the bowl as he instead grasped his now cooled drink. “I suppose. Cold tea’s never bothered me anyways.”   
  
  
They shared more words that night than they had in a long time, as well as the last of the tea they had. With money being so tight for the two of them, they hadn’t had a chance to buy much more than the basic necessities. Food, oil, land fees, they were eating away at what little wealth they had. But at the end of the day they both reminded themselves that it could be worse. They had a roof over their heads, they both had beds to sleep in, they had a water closet, and a bath that wasn’t just a metal tub.   
  
  
Life in Byrgenwerth may have been easier, simpler even. But those days were long gone. They had made the decision to leave that part of their lives behind when they opted to leave the institute, instead of staying like a very small minority of others had. Regardless of them leaving, they still wanted to continue their studies, thus the two of them had stolen a great number of books from the library before they had left. But alas, they hadn’t had the time to continue learning like they had hoped.   
  
  
The lamp was burning low, and they both seemed to take notice of this, both sets of eyes flicking to the now dim flame.   
  
  
Ami was the first to speak up. “We’re getting low on oil.”   
  
  
“It would seem so… How much do we have exactly?”   
  
  
She got up, carefully navigating over into the kitchen area of the dimly lit home and opening one of the cupboards. “Not a lot.” She replied, coming back with a small bottle of oil about half empty. “I have enough money to buy some more tomorrow while you’re out.”   
  
  
Micolash let out a sigh, and rubbed his forehead. He may not be in physical pain, but their situation did not help his stress. “I know we’re short on money and I should be working tomorrow…” He trailed off, lifting his head and letting his fingers drag over his face as he inhaled sharply. “But I need to speak with Laurence. If I can get us out of this-”   
  
  
“You don’t need to justify it.” Ami had cut him off, walking over and pocketing the bottle. She sat down next to him, draping an arm across his shoulders and pulling him a bit closer. “I know that you’re trying to help, and that you need to take some time to do that.” Turning her head to look him in the eyes, she managed a small, lighthearted smile. “We can make due with what we have. Perhaps only just, but we can.”   
  
  
This seemed to put him at ease, at least a bit. His once tense shoulders loosened, and his expression shifted to a much more relaxed one than it previously had been. “I’ll see what I can do for us tomorrow.”   
  
  
With that, they had called it a night. Both Micolash and Ami returned to their rooms after putting out the lamp, though they did bump into each other a few times while trying to navigate through the dark hallway of their shared home.   
  
  
Although he tried his best to sleep, Micolash found himself to be restless, tossing and turning back and forth on his uncomfortably small bed. He wasn’t a child, and yet he found himself sleeping on a bed that may as well have been better suited for one considering his stature. How he wished to be able to stretch out his legs and arms, even if just a little more than he was able to now without his limbs hanging over the edge. But he would get no such luxury, having to settle for letting them dangle awkwardly in the air, or curling up into a fetal position. He never thought he’d actually miss the beds in Byrgenwerth.   
  
  
He chose to simply let his limbs hang despite the incredible uncomfort it gave him, deciding that he’d rather not deal with an aching back tomorrow when talking to Laurence… His mind began to wander slightly as he thought of the man, and he found himself questioning his chances of landing him and Ami official positions in the Healing Church.   
  
  
Micolash took in a breath, giving a deep sigh as he brushed the doubt from his mind. Even if he wasn’t successful, he would earn more of a name simply by being able to speak with the man. “That will be enough.” He told himself, letting his eyes shut for the final time as sleep slowly began to overtake him.   
  
  
His companion in the room over gave a sigh as well. Becoming slightly more worried for her friend at his words. The walls were thin in this home, and often had her wondering just how much of their quiet and worried ramblings the other would be able to hear.   
  
  
Too much is what she decided, curling in on herself as she let sleep try and drag her into unconsciousness. She didn’t want to deal with these negative emotions right now, opting to sleep them off and deal with the guilt of not feeling useful in the morning.   
  
  
Despite her inner turmoil, one thing did help her rest a bit easier that night. The memories she had of Micolash, comforting her and helping her push down her pessimistic thinking as he had so many times in the past.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been awhile, life threw a couple curve balls at me and I couldn't find the focus to write.
> 
> Anyways, back onto this: Implied Abuse, Mentioned Gore/Murder, and Mentioned Death. Enjoy Reading!

The streets of Yharnam were as lively as ever as people darted around each other, weaving and bobbing on the road and sidewalks in an effort to bypass the crowds of those who were simply chattering. The clicking of hooves on the cobble road was nearly drowned out as a coach passed by, parting the crowd effortlessly.  
  
  
    Having not heard it among the hustle and bustle, a young woman was nearly bowled over in her attempt to make way for the horses. She had managed though, and avoided dropping her paper bags and the contents within them. A good thing, considering that some of what she was carrying was glass.  
  
  
    Reaching up to adjust her hat a bit, Ami continued down the busy street. Today had been a good day for her thus far, something she attributed to her friends efforts at getting them into better living conditions. They were a bit more credible now, more trusted than the other students that had come from Byrgenwerth. That’s not to say they had it easy, not at all, but they were at least doing a little better than they had been.  
  
  
    Unlocking the door and pushing it open with her shoulder, Ami entered the quaint place her and Micolash called home. If it hadn’t been for the part of Yharnam they lived in, she would have questioned why the door had been locked. She wiped her shoes from as much of the muck from outside as she could before setting the bags she was carrying down on the small table they had in the entryway to remove her coat.  
  
  
    Shuffling about could be heard from further inside the home. “Welcome home!” He called, presumably from the kitchen. “Did you get our tea?”  
  
  
    Of course that would be the first thing he’d ask. Rolling her eyes and picking up her bags once more, she made her way to the homes small kitchen. “You know, a ‘how was your day’ would be nice too.”  
  
  
    “Right, how was your day? Did you get the tea?”  
  
  
    She sighed, playfully flicking his cheek. “Yes, I got the tea.” She said and put the paper bags onto the table in the middle of the room. She began to unpack what she had bought from them, drawing Micolash’s attention.  
  
  
    “I see you got a roast.” He noted as she brought out an object wrapped up in paper and butchers twine. “Pork?” Picking it up, he felt it’s weight before watching as she went to grab the other things she had bought.  
  
  
    “Yep.” She nodded, taking out more assorted items from the bag. Another, smaller package of paper and twine, and a small spool of extra twine were set down. Sliding the smaller piece of meat from the butchers towards him, she smiled somewhat. “This one’s beef.”  
  
  
    Micolash took hold of the fresh cuts of meat, placing them off to the side. “We’ll be eating well this week then.” He watched as she crumpled the now empty bag, simply tossing it behind her into the common room. He frowned, giving her a deadpan look as she simply smiled back at him in return.  
  
  
    “What? I’ll put it by the fire after.”  
  
  
    Sighing, the taller of the two walked to the discarded paper, picking it up and bringing it back to the table with him to set down. Micolash eyed up the assorted groceries she was unloading. A fresh loaf of bread, a wedge of cheese, and a small selection of assorted vegetables, primarily potatoes.  
  
  
    “The bread wasn't half bad.” She picked it up, handing the loaf to him as her other hand brought out a small bunch of carrots. “So I got a full loaf instead of a half this time.”  
  
  
    “Eating well indeed, a rather nice change of pace.” He quickly set the fresh bread down as the main object of his desires was removed from another bag. His hands darted for the small tin the moment it had been set down, and Micolash immediately went over to one of the cupboards to stash it away.  
  
  
    “A bit antsy, eh?”  
  
  
    Chuckling at his friends teasing, he closed the tea cupboard and returned to the table, beginning to sort through the vegetables she had unloaded. “What? It’s nearly been two weeks since we last had tea.”  
  
  
    Ami smiled as she crumpled the two bags she had just emptied, leaving only one. It was the smallest of the bunch, and from it she produced two small bottles of a rich yellow liquid. Oil for the lamps in the house, an essential item considering they lacked gas lighting in this somewhat shabby home. “Oil was a bit expensive this time around, but this should last us a week or so.”  
  
  
    Nodding, Micolash took the crumpled bags from his companion, a small pile of which he now held in his arms. “We still have a few candles as well.” He began walking into the living room, still conversing as he did. “Even if we do run out of oil, we should be fine.”  
  
  
    Kneeling down to place the crumpled paper into a slowly building collection of fuel off to the side of the small fireplace they had, he contemplated lighting it for a moment. He decided against it however, and stood back upright. The house, although somewhat cool, was fine for the moment. “We do have a decent amount of fuel. If we need to light the fire, we shouldn’t have a problem.”  
  
  
    A low bong filled the air around them, penetrating the walls with ease, as if the sound didn’t care for them. The church bell. It paused for a moment, before it rang again, just as it had before, and then again once more after that. The strong, resonant tone of the bell signaled the hour. It was three o'clock now, early evening would soon be upon them.  
  
  
    Any conversation the two of them had gone to start before was forgotten, whisked away with the chime of the church bell. They stood in silence, the only sound being Micolash as he turned to face his friend once more.  
  
  
    Silence persisted for a few more moments, the last echos of the church bells toll fading away. The bustling noise of the street outside soon began to envelop the small home once more, the moments of peace quickly vanishing. They both seemed to be oblivious to this however, as they simply stood for quite a few moments after, simply staring at each other, as if waiting for the other to start again.  
  
  
    Micolash was the first to speak up, and his expression made it seem as though he had snapped back into his mind from whatever he had been lost so deeply in thought about. “We should finish putting away the food.”  
  
  
    She nodded, eyes still fixated on him, as if she was in a trance. As he passed by, Ami simply stared, as if her mind was struggling to catch up with the words he had said. Shaking her head in an effort to rid it of the haze that had overtaken her, she headed back into the kitchen with him, beginning to help store away their supply of food.  
  
  
    “It’s just a little past three now, eh?” She asked, despite the bell toll clearly having rang three times. As he nodded, Ami stopped her task, standing still for a moment as she pressed the cucumber she was holding to her lip like an extension of her finger. “Well, it’s a bit early to be thinking about it, but how about we have some tea and sandwiches?”  
  
  
    Giving a hum, Micolash frowned slightly as he thought about his companions offer. He was somewhat inclined to disagree for a few reasons, but she added on a little more, causing him to cave in and agree.  
  
  
    “The bread is still fresh. Cucumber sandwiches would be perfect for this.”  
  
  
    Soon, Micolash was putting the kettle they had on to boil, and Ami was cutting the sole cucumber they had into thin slices. The two of them began working together in a smooth fashion, slicing bread, passing knifes and the small bit of butter they had left back and forth like clockwork as they assembled their light meal. They could probably do it with their eyes closed, considering how they seemed to know exactly what the other needed when they needed it. Clearly they had done this many a time, back in the days of Byrgenwerth.  
  
  
    As the beginning of the kettles whistling filled the air, Micolash quickly pulled himself away from their sandwich work. He took the kettle off, pouring the boiling water into the teapot to let it warm as he filled the kettle again to boil water for the tea.  
  
  
    Soon enough, the two of them were sat quite comfortably in the common room, both enjoying a warm cup of tea and light meal for the first time in quite awhile.  
  
  
    “How long has it been exactly?” Micolash asked, taking another small bite out of his sandwich segment. “How long since we’ve sat down like this and had a meal with tea?”  
  
  
    Resting a finger along her lips, Ami exhaled rather sharply through her nose. “The last time we had something akin to high or low tea… It must have been before we left Byrgenwerth, we haven’t had the time nor energy to actually do this since then.”  
  
  
    He hummed a bit in response, finishing off the wedge of sandwich he had and washing it down with the last of his cup of tea. “That would be about two months ago or so then. Time really does just seem to fly by when you’re busy.”  
  
  
    Nodding, Ami polished off her cup of tea as well, and began pouring herself another one. “To be fair, we’ve done almost nothing but work since we left.” She gestured for his cup, and began pouring him more of the hot, dark liquid. “We’d be having a hard time making ends meet as well. The stress of living each day wondering if we had made enough money to eat or keep warm… Of course time was insignificant to us.”  
  
  
    He couldn’t disagree with that. “It was rather rough for the first bit there.” Grasping his cup as it was handed back to him, Micolash looked at his reflection of the surface of his tea before placing it where it belonged on his saucer. “But at least we’re in a better position now. Laurence even invited me back for tea the day after we spoke.”  
  
  
    She nodded at him, giving a slight smile. “Didn’t he invite you back again this Friday as well?” He nodded, and she began to speak again. “I’d say we’re on decent footing then. Everyone wants to be a friend of Laurence right now.”  
  
  
    He paused briefly, humming a bit as if contemplating something. “How has this been affecting your reputation, have you noticed any changes?”  
  
  
    She took a moment to think, before shrugging a bit. “Well, I’ve been turned away from jobs a lot less. And people are giving me a bit more than just pocket change now.” She sipped gingerly on the still steaming liquid in her cup, wincing slightly as it tried burning her tongue. “How about you? You’re the one who’s likely seeing more benefits.”  
  
  
    “You’re not wrong.” He started, putting his cup and saucer down on the table. “I’ve most certainly noticed a difference. But that you’re being treated better as well simply because you’re associated with me is good.” Micolash grabbed another segment of a sandwich and nibbled at it for a moment. “People who recognize us want to stay on our good sides now, they’re all wanting to earn favours from us, to try and get a chance to see Laurence.”  
  
  
    Ami chuckled a bit. “If any of them knew that the reason you had gotten audience with him, they might think differently.” She trailed off, laughter overtaking her at the irony of their situation.  
  
  
    Micolash joined in, not able to stifle his laughter much better than she had. “You’re not wrong, Ami. If the masses knew we were Byrgenwerth colleagues… Oh, how scandalous that would be!”  
  
  
    The two friends talked until they ran out of tea. Micolash frowned a bit when the pot ran dry, even going so far as to open it and check. Apparently he hadn’t realized how much they were drinking. They both wondered aloud about making more, but ultimately decided against it. Tea wasn’t overly expensive, but every penny mattered, even with the two of them not having to pick up gutter change anymore.  
  
  
    A few minutes later, the church bell began to chime again. Five strikes, the evening had very much begun.  
  
  
    The two of them glanced out the window behind them on the couch, noting that the sky had begun to change colour. No longer was it a light shade of blue, slowly it had started transitioning toward a pale yellow as the sun dipped closer and closer to setting somewhere behind the buildings that blocked their view.  
  
  
    Ami stood upright and stretched, noticing her friend grimace slightly as her knees and lower back made rather loud popping and cracking sounds.  
  
  
    “That can’t be healthy…” He muttered, giving her a rather questionable look.  
  
  
   She simply smiled back at him, raising her arms above her head and stretching those out too. “Well it feels good if nothing else.” A sharp exhale escaped her as she felt one of her shoulders pop a bit, letting her arms back down after as she made her way towards the door.  
  
  
    Micolash was still staring at her with the same concerned look. “I can crack my fingers and my back, but this is ridiculous.” He grabbed the empty teapot and got up, taking a few steps towards the kitchen. “Are you off somewhere?”  
  
  
    She hummed in reply, stopping to put her overcoat back on as well as her hat. “Yep, the evening isn’t a bad time to go prowling for work. Lots of people need a few extra hands at the end of the day y’know.”  
  
  
    Having put the teapot and their cups in the kitchen, Micolash was now leaning against the wall in the entrance, an ankle crossed over the other one as he frowned a bit at his friend. “Just be careful. The streets around here aren’t the safest at night.”  
  
  
    Nodding as she unlocked the door, Ami paused and stepped closer to him, placing a hand on his shoulder as a gentle smile graced her. “I’ll be ok, you don’t need to worry about me.”  
  
  
    Yet again he found himself sighing, glancing to the ground for a moment as he did so. “But I do worry.” He looked back up, meeting her gaze and staring into her warm brown eyes. “You’re important to me, Ami. If something were to happen...” He trailed off, his expression mixing into a more melancholic one.   
  
  
    The sensation of his shoulder being squeezed drew his mind back into the present from the horrid thoughts he had been pulled into. Ami was staring back at him, her smile having become somewhat bittersweet.  
  
  
    “Micolash…” She could feel her throat tightening a bit, her voice wavering. She opened her mouth to speak, but found that words had left her for the moment. Instead, she turned to the only other way she knew how to express her feelings, and closed the distance between them.  
  
  
    Her arms slid under his, winding around his back as she pulled him into a tight embrace. The contact wasn’t unwelcome, but certainly wasn’t expected either considering the surprised expression that came over him. Micolash stared down at his much shorter friend, taking note of how she had pressed her ear to his chest.  
  
  
    Her grip around him tightened a bit, and she did her best to smile even if he couldn’t see it. “Thank you, I… I kinda needed to hear that.”  
  
  
    His arms loosely wound around her back, one of his hands giving her a few light rubs and pats. “You’ve been bottling it up again.” Micolash took a long, deep breath as a hand moved to the back of her head. “I’m not like them, Ami. I won’t judge.”  
  
  
    She nodded weakly. “I know… It’s just a bad habit at this point.” She had a feeling she knew why she had been feeling so wound up. Likely due to the stress from their financial situation, on top of losing their former homes in Byrgenwerth. Even if today had been good, that didn’t mean she couldn’t feel the weight of every other day still resting on her shoulders.  
  
  
    Micolash’s lips tilted upward ever so slightly as they simply stood in silence, staring at the other. What must have been a couple of minutes passed, and he ruffled her hair slightly, earning a soft giggle from her. As she turned her head upwards in response, he could see the glassy look in her eyes beginning to fade. In an attempt to lighten the mood a bit further, he removed an arm from around her, his finger pushing her glasses up on her face a bit more.  
  
  
    “Better now?”  
  
  
    Ami nodded, her smile widening some. “Yeah… Thanks, Micolash.”  
  
  
    With that, she pulled away from their extended embrace and walked back to the door. “I’ll be back in awhile.” She grabbed her hat from the coatrack they had, slipping it on before giving a nod to her friend.  
  
  
    He nodded back, and watched as she opened the door to leave. “Stay safe.” He called after her, the door closing a moment or so later. His expression had turned into a neutral frown, and he wandered back into the kitchen to clean their used dishware.  
  
  
    “I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you…” Micolash stared into one of their teacups, his reflection staring back. Ami was someone special. She was a friend he could talk with for hours on end about anything, someone he felt comfortable enough to share a home with, share a bed with… The thought of losing that made him uneasy at best.  
  
  
    After his task had been completed, he went back into the common room, staring out the window at the sky as it ignited in a brilliant blaze of golden red. Normally, he wouldn’t have worried about her. But people had been going missing during the night as of late, and those that were found had turned up dead, mangled near beyond recollection.  
  
  
    There were never any witnesses, all that ever turned up were the bodies, their their eyes slashed open. That someone was going around dragging people off into the darkness, slicing them open for fun…  
  
  
    What made him even more worried was the fact that they weren’t robberies. Victims never had anything of value missing from them. Which meant that anyone could be a target, from the noble men and women, all the way down to the poorest of street urchins.  
  
  
    “Please, just don’t let it happen to her.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings For: Mild Violence and Mild Blood. Enjoy Reading!

The soft glow of afternoon sunlight filled the rather lavish room, filtering in through intricate stained glass. Wispy white curtains danced slightly in the breeze being let in from the open doors, as the ruffling sound of the bushes in the outside garden that circled the enclosed space also floated in on the light wind. The clinks of teacups on saucers joined in with the tranquil sounds of wind chimes, setting a mood that could only be compared to heaven on earth.   
  
  
    "More tea, my friend?"  
  
  
    Humming, Micolash placed his saucer and cup back down on the small wooden table. "Yes, I think I'll have another cup."  
  
  
    As Laurence began to pour his friend another cup of the warm liquid, he noticed that Micolash was eyeing up the trays of food that were off to the side. "Help yourself." He gestured to the silver platters piled with everything from sandwich segments and buttered bread, to pound cake and tarts. "You don't need to sit there like a meek mouse and ask, Micolash. These are here to eat."  
  
  
    "Ah, right..." He reached over to grab something to eat, but hesitated for a moment nonetheless. He glanced between his friend and the food set out in front of him a few times, before finally committing and grabbing a small tart. "Thank you, Laurence."  
  
  
    The First Vicar gave a curt nod, and poured himself another cup of tea as well. "Think nothing of it. You'll always be a welcome guest here."  
  
  
    The two sat in relative silence for awhile, save for the occasional gust of wind rustling the curtains and greenery as it played a tune with the metal chimes hung around the small tea garden. Micolash had begun to grow a bit more bold, grabbing multiple dainty snacks at a time, barely even working on his tea at this point. Laurence simply sat still for the most part, enjoying his free time and allowing himself to relax.  
  
  
    Eventually, he spoke up again after noticing that Micolash had been practically gorging himself on sweets. "Pardon my asking but... Are you doing alright financially?"  
  
  
    He looked up at the question he was asked, in the middle of biting down on a slice of chocolate cake. "Mmm." He quickly set the sweet down, and took a few sips of his tea to help the sweet cake wash down faster. "Ahem... I'm not doing bad, if that's what you're asking."  
  
  
    Laurence sighed, and clasped his hands together in his lap. "But evidently you're not doing good, either. You're stuffing yourself with whatever is closest."  
  
  
    Suddenly finding his over piled plate to be of more interest than their conversation, Micolash began staring at it as he spoke. "We've been... Tight on funds, even with there being a decent bit of work around."  
  
  
    "We?" He raised an eyebrow at him, leaning closer as he spoke. "I didn't know you had a housemate."  
  
  
    Polishing off the slice of cake he took, Micolash took another gulp of tea and tilted his head in slight confusion. "Really now? I thought I'd mentioned that already." He stared at his cup for a few moments, contemplating another cup of hot tea. "But yes, I do have a housemate. I honestly thought that I'd told you about her before."  
  
  
    Shaking his head, Laurence began to smirk at the answer he got. "Her? So you've found more than just a housemate I presume?"  
  
  
    A somewhat surprised look overcame him, and he immediately put his hands up in defense. "Oh, oh no. Gods no, Laurence." Micolash chuckled a bit awkwardly, growing somewhat bashful at his old friends response to him living with a female. "You know I've always been more interested in my studies than women."  
  
  
    "Then how come you're living with one?"  
  
  
    Sighing, Micolash turned back to his tea and began to pour himself another cup of the hot drink. "Because it's a lot cheaper to split the cost of living between two people than to try and pay for everything by myself." Staring into his now nearly filled cup of tea, he found himself beginning to smile. "Besides, I'm comfortable around Ami. She's always been a dear friend of mine, I see no problem with us living together."  
  
  
    At the mention of another one of his former colleagues, Laurence perked up. "You live with Ami? I thought that she would have returned home after Byrgenwerth, she's not a Yharnamite after all." Laurence took a drink from his slowly cooling tea, taking a moment to savour it's flavour before continuing. "Still though, are you sure you're only friends with her? Dear friend or not, you can't deny that the two of you share a rather close bond."  
  
  
    He hummed in response as he finished off the last of a sandwich segment. "No, I can't. But nothing has changed since Byrgenwerth, there's nothing more between us than there was back then.  
  
  
    The First Vicar let out a warm, hearty laugh. "Oh my friend, there's a reason half of Byrgenwerth thought you were together. There's a certain chemistry about the two of you." He likely would have continued on about the two of them, but was interrupted by the sounds of footsteps approaching from the doors behind them.  
  
  
Micolash glanced past his friend, taking note of an approaching figure in rather ornate white robes with a blindfold cap on. Someone from The Choir, the highest ranking members of The Healing Church.  
  
  
    They approached Laurence and leaned in, quietly whispering something into his ear. He hummed quietly, and gave The Choir member a nod, signaling them to leave. "I'm sorry to have to cut this a bit shorter than usual, Micolash, but something has come up. I must take my leave."    
  


    He simply extended his arms, shrugging and shooting a smile at his friend. "It's quite alright, Laurence. You're the head of The Healing Church, it's a miracle that you find time to even have me for tea." He went to get up, but paused, eyes trailing to the numerous sweets still laid out.  
  
  
    "... Would it be alright if I brought some with me?"  
  
  
    Laurence scoffed a bit at that, and stood up. "Of course. Take as much as you like, we've plenty of food here."  
  
  
    With that, Micolash began to hastily wrap up various sweets with napkins, shoving them into his trench coats pockets as he stood. He took a few steps away from the table, but quickly stepped back and took his cup, downing the rest of the fine tea in a quick gulp, earning a few more laughs from Laurence.  
  
  
    As he went to leave however, Laurence stopped him. "I'm afraid it might be awhile before I am able to invite you again, Micolash..." He clasped a hand onto Micolash’s shoulder, and forced a smile. "But please, do say hello to Ami for me. You're more than welcome to bring her along next time if you wish.”    
  


    "I'll keep that in mind..." He turned to the lift at the end of the garden as it came up, two more members of The Choir stepping out and approaching them. "I should be going now however. Have a good day, Laurence"  
  
  
    Bidding farewell to his friend as he had opted to stay behind with a couple of newly arrived Choir Members, Micolash gave them a nod as he passed. One of them ignored him, while the other watched him pass by. Although the blindfold caps they wore prevented Micolash from seeing their expressions, he couldn't help the bitterly cold feeling that he was being glared at.  
  
  
    Doing his best to appear as though he hadn't noticed, Micolash stepped into the lift and onto the pressure activated mechanism in the center. The round platform he stood on began to lower, slowly for only a few brief moments as it then began to speed up, dropping with exhilarating speed.He turned around, deciding to peer out the few windows that lined the elevator shaft as the lift continued to drop him closer and closer to the ground.  
  
  
    As he did, he took notice of a rather strong rumbling sensation in the air around him. The bell was beginning to toll, and despite how loud the lift and it's chains were, the bell rather easily overpowered their noises as it began to ring from just the other side of the shaft wall. The noise reverberated around him harmonically, and he could feel the powerful sound waves it send out rumbling through his body.  
  
  
    By the time the lift began to slow, Micolash felt somewhat disorientated, even a little nauseous. The elevator shaft caught the sound of the bells toll rather well, much to his misfortune. He stumbled a bit as he exited the lift, earning him a few questionable looks from some of the clerics that were conversing nearby. The ground floor of the clock tower, and the area surrounding was somewhat of a social gathering place for the members of The Healing Church. It was easy to locate, and had a calm air to it as well.  
  
  
    Now beginning to leave the tower, Micolash was silently thankful for having an extra coat to wear. There were a great many clerics about at the moment, and Byrgenwerth attire was almost certainly unwelcome here seeing as how Laurence had denounced the college.  
  
  
    Neither he or Ami had actually worn their full student outfits since they had left the institution, only ever wearing the very basics of the outfit, shirt, vest, pants and shoes. Those alone, or even put together wouldn't tip many people off to them being former students, but unfortunately, just that the fact that they had begun to look for work very shortly after the public denunciation of the college had most assuming they were students looking for jobs. Of course, not wearing the Byrgenwerth Robe helped, but only to a certain degree.  
  
  
    As Micolash left the Cathedral Ward, he felt a sense of relief. No longer was he under the ever watchful eyes of the clerics, and even though he hadn't really been paying all that much attention to who was watching him, he knew that at least one or two people had been tailing him. Despite being a friend of Laurence, those in The Healing Church were still wary of outsiders who hadn't come for Blood Healing. It was almost the sole reason people sought out entry into the Grand Cathedral, so for someone to be there on different business was more than enough to raise the suspicions of people.  
  
  
    The bridge leading from the Cathedral Ward into Central Yharnam was busy as ever with both foot traffic and carriages. Micolash had a bit of a hard time getting through the crowd, but had managed without too much trouble once he had the chance to duck behind a passing carriage and tail it. Luckily, he and Ami's home was situated on a somewhat secluded and glum side street, meaning that the rest of the journey after wasn't overly difficult.  
  
  
    Thankfully, Micolash had been smart enough to keep his key in one of his inner pockets, and not his outer ones. Those pockets were currently stuffed full with confections for he and Ami to enjoy, and getting his one door key sticky was something he was not keen on doing.  
  
  
    With a quick turn of the key, the absence of a click from the door told him that the house was unlocked. Both curiosity and fear began to intertwine. It wasn't like either of them to leave the home unlocked, even when one of them was home. This part of Central Yharnam wasn't exactly an ideal place to live, thievery and pickpocketing was common, so most everyone with their wits about them kept their doors locked.  
  
  
    Swallowing a knot that had begun to form in his throat, he pushed the door open and hesitantly looked around the entryway. Shuffling could be heard from further in the home, but he couldn't immediately tell from where as he was instead doing his best to close the door without it creaking too much. Micolash was torn between announcing his presence, or staying quiet as he entered.  
  
  
    His heart began beating harder as he took a deep breath, and called out into his quaint home. "Hello? Is anyone here?"  
  
  
    The shuffling began again, approaching from his immediate left in common room. Before he could even react to grab something, a head poked around the corner.  
  
  
    "Oh good gods, you nearly gave me a--what happened?"  
  
  
    Micolash was staring at his housemate, a somewhat less frightened but equally as shocked expression resting upon him. Ami was grinning, almost proudly at him despite having a bandage pressed to her cheek. The skin around it was darkened, and he could see the remnants of blood dried onto her jaw.  
  
  
    "Welcome home, Micolash." She began, and couldn't help a few chuckles that escaped her. "How was your tea time with Laurence?"  
  
  
    "My tea time with..." He paused, becoming somewhat alarmed as he stepped forward and through the entryway into the common room. "Ami! What the hell happened to you?"  
  
  
    She shrugged as best she could with one hand pressing her bit of bandage to her cheek. "Got into a fight."  
  
  
    Micolash let out an exasperated groan at her response. "Obviously! I mean what over?"  
  
  
    "I almost got mugged coming home."  
  
  
    Eyes widening somewhat as he went to sit down on the couch, Micolash patted the space beside him. "Are you alright?"  
  
  
    She sat down next to him, and sighed somewhat, removing the bandage from her cheek. "Some guy came up to me and demanded that I fork over whatever I had. I refused, and tried to talk him out of it, but..."  
  
  
    Staring at the rather dark bruise her bandage had once covered and small cut that accompanied it, his frown became even more apparent. "So he punched you."  
  
  
    Ami nodded at his words. "I hit him in the nose, and he took off bleeding."  
  
  
    He wrapped an arm gently around her shoulders, pulling her a bit closer to him as he let out a long sigh. She responded by leaning into his side, and he gave a light squeeze to her arm as she did so. "Ami... What if he'd had a weapon? A knife, or a pistol?"  
  
  
    She began frowning a bit more at that, and sighed. "I... I don't know... But I-"  
  
  
    "I won't hear any excuses from you." Micolash rested his free hand on her knee, his pale blue eyes piercing into hers as she looked up at him, worry clearly scrolled within them.  
  
  
    "But I can't just hand over money like that. We may have a roof over our heads, but it's a roof that leaks in the shady part of town." She glanced down at their feet, not really wanting to look him in the eyes, feeling somewhat ashamed of her actions. "And... I didn't see anything on him..."  
  
  
    His hand began rubbing circles on her back, attempting to calm her down. "Ami... Look at me, Ami." After a few moments, she raised her head to look at him. The same worry as before danced in his eyes vibrantly. "I know how we're living, and I know we're not in a great spot right now." Accompanying that worry, there was also a hint of something else rather hard to describe. Perhaps a deeper, more troubled worry, if possible. "But please... Don't do that again. Money can be replaced, you can't."  
  
  
    Ami couldn't help the small grin that overcame her at that. She too snaked an arm around her friend, pulling him a bit closer to her. "Yeah... I guess you're right about that, huh?"  
  
  
    He nodded slightly, patting her back. "This is exactly why I worry about you going out to work in the evenings, because something like this is more likely to happen then." Micolash gave one last pat to his friends back, before sitting more upright, beginning to unbutton his coat, a somewhat grim smile adorning him. "Enough with this sour mood... I have a surprise for you."  
  
  
    They sat there for quite some time after, chatting more happily about other things that had occurred that day as they munched on the sweets that Micolash had brought back home from the Grand Cathedral. Any semblance of worry or stress gradually melted away as they talked and ate, the both of them beginning to feel much better as their conversation continued on. Not even the toll of the bell was able to stop their chatter.  
  
  
    However, once they realized that the light in the room was beginning to dim quite dramatically, they had a decision to make.  
  
  
    "Shall we light the oil lamp?" Ami asked, already standing up to go fetch it if called for.  
  
  
    Humming in contemplation, her friend also stood and stretched, his back making a slight cracking noise as he did so. "Hmm... No, I think it's about time we retired for the night."  
  
  
    "Well, you can if you want, but I'm still pretty awake."  
  
  
    Rolling his eyes, Micolash poked his friend lightly on her uninjured cheek. "Don't be so stubborn about this, you need rest if you want this to heal quickly."  
  
  
    Letting out an overplayed sigh as she slumped backwards a bit, Ami looked at him from the corner of her vision. "But Micolaaaaash, I'm not sleepy..."  
  
  
    Crossing his arms over his chest, the taller of the two gave her a rather unamused look. "Fine, I'll light the lamp then." He said as he began walking away to find the matches they had. A few minutes later after a but of ruckus, he returned with the light in hand, and sat back down with his friend. "There, now we can see."  
  
  
    "What was all that clamoring in the kitchen about?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at him in curiosity. He had only been looking for the matches, surely they couldn't have been that hard to find.  
  
  
    "Oh, that." Not able to stifle the chuckle that left him, Micolash clasped a hand onto his dear friends shoulder. "Well, considering you've had a bit of a rough day, and you're not tired, I figured that I'd make some tea for us."  
  
  
    Smiling a bit, Ami nudged his side playfully. "I thought you were tired though?"  
  
  
    "If you're staying up, I may as well do the same." He shook his head in response, and gently nudged her back in the shoulder. "Besides, as nice as tea with Laurence is, I wouldn't pass up a chance to have some with you."  
  
  
    "I'm being put on quite the pedestal there." She paused, reaching up to poke his nose. "Tea with me, better than whatever fancy place Laurence must have? I'm honoured." Ami teased him, and stood as the kettle began to whistle from the kitchen.  
  
  
    He couldn't help but crack a slight smile as she bugged him. "What can I say?" Micolash shrugged, arms extended outwards. "I rather enjoy your company."  
  
  
    Sometime later, the room had grown quiet. Outside, the moon was rising, it's soft glow shining in through the window behind the couch. The sight was rather nice, and likely would have made the pair stare at it's silent beauty for a few moments.  
  
  
    But neither of them were actually awake to see it, despite them not being in their beds. In fact, the both of them having fallen asleep together on the couch, leaning against each other comfortably. The last of their tea long forgotten, still cooling in their cups as the night progressed ever onward.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings For: Violence/Murder, and Blood/Gore. Enjoy Reading!

A frustrated groan escaped Micolash as he stared at the letter in his hands. The words written on it sending a clear message. He understood it perfectly, but it frustrated him nonetheless. The clicking of the door unlocking barely registered with him, as he reread the parchment he was loosely gripping over and over, as if hoping for there to be some mistake in it's contents. But there was none, and he knew that.  
  
  
    He let out another huff of annoyance as he began scanning the paper for what must have been the third or fourth time, like reading it yet again would somehow make a change to what it was saying.  
  
  
    "What are you scowling at so harshly?"  
  
  
    Looking up his gaze met Ami's, only about a foot or so away from him. He had become so lost as his thoughts pulled him down that he hadn't even noticed that she had walked over next to him, and was currently bending down to glance between the paper in his hands and himself. His eyes wandered to her cheek briefly, noting that it had almost fully healed over now that it had been about a week.  
  
  
    "Oh, I got a letter from Laurence."  
  
  
    She raised an eyebrow at this, curiosity getting the better of her. "A letter from your good friend The First Vicar? Whatever is the occasion?" Upon noticing the slight frown he had deepening at her question, she moved to his other side and sat down next to him on the couch. "Bad news I presume?"  
  
  
    Resting a hand upon his brow, Micolash waved the paper in front of her to take, letting out yet another groan as he did so. "Go on, see for yourself."  
  
  
    "Alright then." Ami took the paper delicately from his hands and gave it a very quick look over. This was most certainly Laurence's writing, the smooth, elegant penmanship giving it away near instantly as the letters curved and twirled about the page. She then cleared her throat, adopting a stuffy, proud tone as she began to read aloud.  
  
  
    "My dear friend, Micolash." She had to stop at that, and pursed her lips together into a proud little smirk. "Oh wow, he called you his 'dear friend'. That's some high praise from someone like Laurence, eh?"  
  
  
    Grumbling quietly to himself as he rested his head in his hands, Micolash glanced tiredly at his living companion out of the corner of his vision. "Just keep reading..."  
  
  
    Noting the somewhat dull tone to his voice, Ami gave him an apologetic look and kept reading. "It is with great regret I must inform you that for the time being, I will no longer be able to invite you for afternoon tea due to the recent incident that has transpired at Cainhurst Castle."  
  
  
    Pausing as her expression morphed into a somewhat furious one, Ami glared at the page, the edges of where she gripped it crinkling a bit. "Cainhurst?" She questioned, before looking to her dear friend. "He thinks you're responsible for that?!"  
  
  
    Only a short distance from the outskirts of Yharnam was a rather large, deep lake with an island that housed an impressive, sprawling stone castle on it. The Castle of Cainhurst, home of the Cainhurst Nobles. The residents of Cainhurst Castle were one of, if not the oldest family in the area. As such, they were looked upon with great respect and dignity, despite not having much power outside of their grand home.  
  
  
    Recently, there had been an incident that stirred up Cainhurst, The Healing Church, and the city of Yharnam itself. Someone who was a former student of Byrgenwerth, and someone who must have been fairly close to Laurence at that, had managed to not only infiltrate the Grand Cathedral, but had stolen some of the Old Blood. This mystery thief, cloaked in the Byrgenwerth Robe, had brought the Old Blood to Cainhurst Castle, and had apparently presented it to the Cainhurst Nobles.  
  
  
    This was a very big problem for The Healing Church. The entire foundation of the church was composed of the Old Blood and it's healing properties. The reason The Healing Church had been founded and brought up in power so quickly by Laurence was because they were the only ones with access to the Old Blood, the only ones who could heal people of even the most horrible disease or sickness. This is why The Healing Church had such a tight grip around Yharnam, they practically controlled the population through Blood Ministration and Blood Healing.  
  
  
    Of course, the church had tried to keep this incident as quiet as they could. But word had gotten out, spreading like wildfire among the population of Yharnam. Soon, whisperings had begun stirring about, of people considering leaving for Cainhurst Castle to seek treatment instead, as it was only a short walk further than the Grand Cathedral was. One of the entrances to  Hemwick Charnel Lane, the thoroughfare that was connected to Cainhurst Bridge, was just past the Grand Cathedral.   
  
  
    If one didn't mind that the residents of Hemwick were all primarily embalmers and gravetenders, and as such basically lived in an ever expanding graveyard, then Cainhurst was almost more worth the travel. The Healing Church healed people through Healing Nuns, people who had been exposed to the Old Blood, and thus could have their own blood used for healing. The Old Blood was presented to the clerics for communion, the nuns to treat their blood for healing. As such, Pure Old Blood was only ever used for healing those who were the sickest.  
  
  
    Cainhurst however, had made no stance on such a thing, and even those who weren't gravely ill saw this as an opportunity to seek further treatment. This alone could spell the end for The Healing Church and Laurence, as Cainhurst now held the same key to their power.  
  
  
    Micolash looked up at her remark, and sighed yet again. "No, I don't think he's convicting me, keep reading."  
  
  
    Peeling her eyes back onto the paper, Ami began reading aloud again and quickly understood what he meant. "I wish not to put you in harms way. And so, due to your history with Byrgenwerth, I must insist that you stay away from both the Grand Cathedral and Cathedral Ward until things settle down. Keep your wits about you, and take care to be wary of the night."  
  
  
    She hummed quietly, setting the paper down as she spoke the final words scrawled upon the parchment. "With pure regards, First Vicar Laurence." Ami looked to Micolash again, resting a hand on his knee. "How did you get this letter anyways?"  
  
  
    "When I entered the clock tower earlier this afternoon, a member of The Choir approached me and gave me a sealed envelope, and told me to leave." Micolash leaned back on the couch, arms draping over the back of it.  
  
  
    She joined him leaning back as well, her hand leaving his knee and returning to hers as she let herself sink into the cushions a bit. "I suppose he's trying to look out for you, telling you to stay away until things smooth over." Ami propped her feet up onto the table, beginning to stare at them. "But what was that bit about the night? Talk about cryptic..."  
  
  
    Nodding in agreement, Micolash also put his feet up. "I'm not sure, but given how those vanishings and murders have been occuring at night, perhaps he's worried about that? I haven't the faintest clue why though..."  
  
  
    They stayed silent for a bit, thinking over what the letter from Laurence had said. Neither of them could think of anything else that he could be warning them about, and decided to let it rest. They had more important things to be thinking about, such as what they would be having for dinner.  
  
  
    "Well... There's a new tea garden out by Old Yharnam." Sitting up as she spoke, Ami's feet plopped to the ground and she used the momentum to stand upright. "It's bound to be about half past five or so right now. They should still be letting in people for dinner still."  
  
  
    Taking a moment to contemplate her offer, Micolash let his feet back down onto the floor and stood. "If we have the funds, I don't see why not." He replied, stretching out his back as he did so. "I assume you've been planning this, given your enthusiasm?"  
  
  
    She gave a nod, smiling a bit to her companion. "Mhmm. I've been wanting to go to a tea garden for awhile, but I thought it'd be nice if we went together." Walking over to the door, Ami slid on her overcoat and hat. "I mean, why would I treat myself and not bring you?"  
  
  
    He quickly joined her, sliding in his own, longer coat and fastening the buttons on its sleeves. "We always do seem to do most things together, don't we?" He asked as he stepped outside, taking out his key and waiting for her to exit the home as well before shutting the door and locking it. "It's nice to have someone to enjoy life's little pleasures with."  
  
  
    They should have stayed home.  
  
  
    Nodding as they began their walk, the two of them quietly chatted as they went. Old Yharnam was the oldest part of the city, build in the lowest area of land. The rest of Yharnam had basically been built on top of Old Yharnam as a result. Thankfully, Micolash and Ami lived in one of the outskirt areas of Central Yharnam, not too great of a distance from where most considered Old Yharnam to begin.   
  
  
    The only troubling thing about Old Yharnam was that recently, there had been a mysterious illness going around within it. The Healing Church had coined a term for it, Ashen Blood. Apparently it was some kind of new disease that was semi-resistant to Blood Healing, and even more strange, appearing more commonly in women.   
  
  
    The Healing Church had stopped administering blood to the area as a result, and instead supplied the people of Old Yharnam with traditional medicine. Thankfully, it seemed to work rather well, and the sickness had been contained to Old Yharnam for now. Regardless, most people found themselves avoiding the area, out of fear of contracting Ashen Blood. But the tea garden Ami had in mind wasn't in Old Yharnam, simply near the area where it began.  
  
  
    The church bell began to toll as the two of them approached the entrance to the garden, the chime of the bell from the Grand Cathedral ringing out clearly even in this far corner of the city.  
  
  
    As they made their way to the entrance, they stood together in a small line of other patrons. All well dressed, the men for the most part had sleek black coats and freshly polished shoes. The women on the other hand, were all wearing dresses that fit incredibly snug around their waists. Ami and Micolash looked a bit out of place in the line, but not terribly so. Their outerwear matched that of the others, they simply had theirs loose instead of buttoned up, showing their rather fine vests below.  
  
  
    "Are you two gentlemen together?" They were asked as they approached the front of the small line, as the attendant gave them a quick look over.  
  
  
    Micolash opened his mouth to speak, likely going to correct the young man about his friends gender. But instead, he was cut off before he could even begin to speak.  
  
  
    "Yes, we are."  
  
  
    He glanced to Ami, raising an eyebrow at her as they were lead inside to a small wooden table. Once seated, Micolash leaned forward towards her, and gave her a rather dull look. "Last I checked, you weren't a man Ami."  
  
  
    Shrugging a bit, Ami simply brushed off the comment. "It happens a lot, I don't exactly dress like a woman now do I?"  
  
  
    Taking a look around at the other tables, and the garden itself, Micolash couldn't disagree. "Fair enough. You've never been one for corsets and dresses." He gestured to her, and she did a little bow in return.  
  
  
    "Those things look horribly uncomfortable. Even if I was thin enough to consider wearing one I wouldn't." Ami leaned in closer to her friend, her voice dropping to a lower volume. "There's a reason people aren't pencil thin like those things make you. We have intestines and the like, it can't be healthy to squeeze those like that."  
  
  
    Nodding in agreement, Micolash sighed and leaned back in his chair a bit, his gaze beginning to wander around the garden again. "I can't agree more. That's probably part of the reason women who wear those faint seemingly without cause."  
  
  
    As he looked around the tea garden, he took in the scenery through it. Little shrubs and flower beds, raised off the ground in brick housings to help give the small plaza dimension, colour, and a slight bit of privacy from table to table. Of course, this seemingly thin barrier didn't stop people from chattering rather loudly around them, but there wasn't anything either of them could do about that other than keep their own conversations at a much more tolerable volume.  
  
  
    "This is a rather quaint little place, isn't it?"  
  
  
    Ami glanced around as well, eyes darting about the garden. "I wouldn't call it small. It's rather large, considering we're near Old Yharnam." Taking note of a server passing by, Ami took out her coin pouch. The movement caught his eye, and she made sure to keep eye contact with him as she dropped a coin into a slotted box in the center of the table.  
  
  
    The young man came right over, chatted for a few long moments, and then went right to work at fetching them their tea and evening meal.  
  
  
    Micolash brushed a bit of his hair back, tucking it behind his ear in an effort to stop it from falling back into his eyes. "That worked rather well." He pointed out, and only a few moments later the young man returned with their tea, and a tray of sandwiches, meats, and sweets for them to indulge in.  
  
  
    Smiling as their tea and assorted food was set down for them, Ami immediately began pouring herself a cup of the piping hot liquid. "A bit of money always ensures faster service."  
  
  
    Although he couldn't argue that point, Micolash instead chose another to debate as he grabbed hold of a slice of bread and jam. "Yes, but do we have the funds to afford doing so?"  
  
  
    She simply shrugged in response, earning an exasperated sigh from her companion. "I don't mind tossing in some of my personal savings so we can enjoy ourselves."  
  
  
    "You mean the pocket change you've been setting aside for weeks?"  
  
  
    Ami rolled her eyes, and pointed her fork at him. "Hey, it's adding up."  
  
  
    A bit after the moon had begun to rise, the two of them had finished their pot of tea, and stuffed themselves full of as much of the presented food as they could reasonably eat. Ami paid the man who had served them, and the two were quickly off on their way back home.  
  
  
    Or at least they would have been, but something delayed their return a bit.  
  
  
    "Oi, Micolash?"  
  
  
    Turning to face his friend as she came to a stop, Micolash tilted his head a bit. "Yes, what is it?"  
  
  
    Giving a bit of a hiccup, Ami placed a hand over her stomach. "I know you said don't gorge myself but..." Leaning forward a bit from discomfort, she let out a low groan. "I think I may have overdone it..."  
  
  
    Rolling his eyes as a sigh slipped through his lips, Micolash placed a hand gingerly on her shoulder. "You want to walk around for a bit before we head home, I take it?"  
  
  
    Nodding, Ami stood a bit straighter and pushed up her glasses, which had slid a bit too far down her nose while she had been doubled over. "Yeah... If you wouldn't mind that is."  
  
  
    He gave her a few soft pats, shaking his head. "It's no trouble, we can walk for awhile."  
  
  
    The two companions shuffled slowly through the streets bordering Old Yharnam and Central Yharnam. They talked for awhile, but the majority of it was just thoughtless chatter.  
  
  
    Ami was beginning to feel better now, and asked Micolash to check the time with his pocket watch. Right as he was about to announce how late it was however, they both paused rather abruptly, turning their heads in the same direction, down the side street beside them.  
  
  
    There was a low, growling noise originating from it, and piercing through the darkness were two glowing purple eyes.  
  
  
    "Micolash... What is that?" Ami asked in a quivering voice, but got no response from her silent friend.  
  
  
    Whatever it was took a step towards them, slowly presenting itself from the shadows. The horrid monster that began to take shape as it walked towards them was akin to that of a werewolf from a child's storybook. In it's large, elongated jaws was the body of a person, clad in dark, leather clothing, their body mangled as if the beast had been feasting upon it.   
  
  
    Backing away from the beast as it approached, Micolash had grabbed ahold of Ami’s arm and hand, beginning to pull her with him as he sped up a bit more. “Ami…” Fear ran up his spine as it dropped the body it held in it’s jaws, beginning to snarl at them.   
  
  
    _“Ami!”_   
  
  
He broke into a sprint, tugging Ami with him as the beast let out a howl and lunged towards them. Thankfully, it missed, but Micolash had no intention on sticking around to give it another chance to try and tackle them over.   
  
  
    Chancing a glance behind them, Ami’s blood ran cold as she saw whatever that thing was chasing them. “It’s coming!” She called, voice breaking a bit as she willed her legs to run faster to try and keep up. But slowly, the monster was gaining on them.   
  
  
    Not really knowing where to go, as they were both unfamiliar with this part of Yharnam, Micolash quickly pulled Ami down a side street. His plan was to force the beast to slow down to turn, giving them time to run through and back onto a more main area on the other side. But they soon found that their way was blocked.   
  
  
    As the two approached the halfway point in the alley, another figure appeared in their path from the corner in at the end of the street, blocking their exit. Clad in the same dark, flowing leather robes as the dead man the werewolf like creature had been gnawing on. He also wore a face mask that covered up to his eyes, and a hat with wispy, feather like frays on the back of it.   
  
  
    The pair had no choice but to stop, as whoever this person was, they blocked a rather large amount of the narrow street as. He took one look either at them, or past them further down the street before knocking over a pile of boxes to block the way he had come from. On top of that, he had some strange form of weapon in his right hand. It resembled a giant meat cleaver, but was curved, and had a serrated edge on the outside, while the inner one was sharp like a blade. In the figures left hand, what appeared to be a rifle of sorts with some sort of blade attached to the end of it.   
  
  
    They went to turn around, but found that the beast was approaching from behind, in less of a run now and more so that of a quick jog. Trapped between a mysterious man with numerous weapons, and a man hungry creature, Micolash and Ami found themselves frozen in place, unsure of how to handle the situation that was likely to end along with their lives very soon.   
  
  
    The man dashed forward, forcefully shouldering his way between the two and past them, knocking them both aside in the process. With a flick of his forearm, the giant blade he wielded made a clicking noise and emitted sparks as small gears and mechanisms were forced to move by the momentum. The weapon was locked in an outward position now, the edge of the blade able to be used to slice at whatever monstrosity that was hellbent on devouring them.   
  
  
    As the beast made a lunge, the masked man took a swing at it. The blade of his weapon connected with the werewolf's face, slicing through it’s flesh with ease. But it would not be outdone so easily.   
  
  
    After backing off from being hit, the beast made another lunge at the man, but this time swiped forward with its massive claws, knocking the strange rifle out of his hands and back towards Ami and Micolash.   
  
  
    The two companions moved back somewhat further down the alley, scooting closer to each other as they slowly got up and watched with a mixture of horror and morbid curiosity at the fight unfolding before them. Fangs and metal clashed, as did claws and leather. Hot blood spewed from the man, and the beast, as they had both sustained heavy injuries, but it was quickly over.   
  
  
    Taking a step back, the man flicked his forearm again, locking the blade back in towards the handle of his weapon to use the serrated side against this creature. As it lunged forwards for him again, he pulled his arm back, before also lunging forward with a slight spin as he tore through the beasts flesh. As it crumpled to the ground, he quickly turned, once more transforming his weapon and burying the edge of it deep into the back of the wolf like monster, finishing it off as blood spewed onto both him and his weapon.   
  
  
    As he stood up once more, the strange man turned to the pair back down the alley. He took out an empty syringe, staring at it for a moment before shaking his head, as if cursing it for not being filled with medicine.   
  
  
    The two didn’t know what to say, and were thinking of thanking him for saving their lives...   
  
  
    Until he flicked his weapon inwards again, and began to slowly approach them.   
  
  
    “W-Wait a minute, hold on now.” Micolash raised his hands up in front of himself defensively, beginning to back away some more. A chill ran up his spine, as the man made no effort to slow down his advancement. “We had nothing to do with this, we’re just bystanders…” An awkward, almost forced chuckle bubbled up from his throat as he tried to deescalate the situation. His attempts fell on deaf ears however, as the man's reply made everything clear.   
  
  
    “No witnesses to the beasts, nor to the hunt.” He replied in a gruff, tired voice that was slightly muffled by his mask. “The dead do not speak.”   
  
  
    Another horrible chill ran through Micolash as his heart began beating erratically. They had been saved by this man, from what would have most certainly been a horrible, painfully slow death at the jaws of a man eating monster. But now they had once again become the prey, this time to another man, just as bloodthirsty as the beast he had just slain. He didn’t know what to do, if there was even anything he could do. This man was set on killing them, and the cold look he was giving them almost ensured that he could not be talked out of it.   
  
  
    _“Stay back!”_   
  
  
    Micolash snapped from his fearful thoughts at the sound of Ami shouting. He glanced to his companion, eyes widening somewhat as he realized just what was happening.   
  
  
    Her arms were extended in front of her, cradling the strange rifle in a firing position as she securely held the butt of the gun into her right shoulder. Her knuckles were turning white at the death grip she held the weapon in, looking down it’s rather awkward lack of proper iron sights as her legs trembled a bit. “I’m warning you, back off!”   
  
  
    The cloaked man paused in his strides for a moment, before chuckling at her. “And what do you plan on doing with that there, shooting me? You’ve only got one shot in it.”   
  
  
    Feeling a knot forming in her stomach, Ami did her best to hold strong, but the barrel of the rifle lowered somewhat. This thing had no proper sights, its barrel looked more like a spear than it did a gun, and she knew he was right about it only having one bullet since she had checked the chamber before she had grabbed it.   
  
  
    The man saw this hesitation as a sign of weakness, and began approaching again. “Well now, lass. I suppose you don’t have it in you, eh?”   
  
  
    “I-I mean it!” Her voice was shaking, and she could feel tears beginning to form in her eyes as she took a few steps back.   
  
  
    Still wide eyed, Micolash felt the now almost numb sensation of fear coursing through him. “Ami…” Convinced that these were going to be their final moments, he felt the need to reach out and clasp her shoulder, to try and comfort her, and yet…  
  
  
     Approaching regardless, the masked man gave a sigh. “You’ve got a weapon and everything, and yet you’re still just like the rest. You’ve got nowhere to run, cornered like a rat, and yet you can’t pull the trigger.”   
  
  
    “Don’t come any closer!”   
  
  
    “Or what?” He was shouting at her now, as if daring for her to take the shot he almost certainly knew she wouldn’t. He even stopped walking, and extended his arms outward to give her a clear shot at his heart.   
  
  
    “I’ve had just about enough of you and all of your threats, now give that here!” He stepped forward.   
  
  
    A scream, and the yanking of the rifle upright back into firing position.   
  
  
    A lone gunshot.   
  
  
    Silence.   
  
  
    Micolash had an arm around Ami, helping her stumble out of the alleyway, over the discarded firearm, and through the pooling blood at their feet.   
  
  
    There were now two corpses in that side street.   
  
  
    Collapsing onto her knees as they exited and made their way to end opposite edge of the street, Ami leaned over the edge of the road, feeling the sudden urge to vomit.   
  
  
    “I just killed a man.”   
  
  
    She got no response from her friend. He wasn’t even trying to console her. Instead, when she looked up after her stomach had vacated some of its contents, she found that he was transfixed on something ahead of them.   
  
  
    Both of them were currently situated on the very edge of Central Yharnam, in a spot where you could easily look over the edge of the railing next to the road and peer down into what the people called Old Yharnam. This gave them a perfect view of the hell that was transpiring below.   
  
  
    The distant noise of shouting, continuous gunshots, and screams filled the air around them, slowly drifting up from Old Yharnam. An old bell from the area began to chime frantically, as smoke rose up from the hazy orange glow.   
  
  
    “It’s burning.”   
  
  
    That was all that Micolash was able to say in that moment, any further words refusing to present themselves to him as he stared in an almost trance like state of shock. But his eyes were not solely fixed on part of the city below. In fact, his eyes had slowly trailed upward into the sky.   
  
  
    Ami followed his gaze, adopting a similar look of horror. Now understanding why the light around them wasn’t a normal pale glow anymore.   
  
  
    The oldest section of the city was on fire, smoke trailing off high into the sky as a symphony of screams for help filled the night. Old Yharnam was burning to the ground underneath a red, bleeding moon.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that it's been awhile! I've been kind of in a writing slump, but I'm starting to pull out of it now! Anyways, on with the story~
> 
> Warnings For: Blood/Gore and Mentioned Violence/Murder. Enjoy Reading!

Shutting and quickly locking the door, Micolash let out a breath he didn’t realize he had been holding. His legs ached, and his head wasn’t doing much better. If it hadn’t been for his friend, he likely would have slid down the door and fallen asleep right there. But his mind was still racing, as was his heartbeat. Instead, he simply slumped back against the door a bit, taking a few deep breaths to try and steady himself before stepping forward. He was needed right now.   
  
  
    She was staring at her hands in a panicked daze, blood splattered across them. The smell of it was still strong in the air around her, having it caked on her pants from stumbling into the pool of it in the alley. Slowly drying and fading, but still there. Still blood...   
  
  
    “Ami.”   
  
  
    His voice was accompanied by the feeling of his hand gently grabbing her shoulder, yanking her out of her nightmarish reverie. Wide eyes locked with his much calmer ones as her head snapped back to look at him. It was hard to focus, hard to see clearly, even with her glasses on.   
  
  
    It was then that his expression shifted, the once calm neutral it had been quickly turning into one of worry as he took another step closer. Carefully, he reached out, clasping hold of her other shoulder. “Ami, calm down.” Micolash brought her closer to him, his arms slowly snaking around her back and pulling her into an embrace, his chin resting on the top of her head as he took in a deep breath, her scent rich with the almost sickly strong smell of crimson life.   
  
  
    Ami’s thoughts began to fade a bit in his arms, the gentle stroking his his hands along her spine physically calming her down. The images in her mind began to wash away, bringing her back into the present. Her own arms quickly grabbed up at his shoulder blades, squeezing him into her tightly as tears began to form in her eyes. Each struggled breath made her shake in their embrace, not entirely sure how to stop from quivering like a leaf as salty tears began to slowly pour from her.  
  
  
    “Micolash, I killed someone…”   
  
  
    He exhaled deeply, arms giving a gentle squeeze to her wider frame. “I know you did. I know you killed someone…” His voice trailed off a bit as she shook once again, a bit more violently than previous. “Look at me, Ami. Please…” As she untucked her head from his neck and met his gaze, Micolash could see the fear swirling in her warm chocolate tinted eyes. The same look of fear that had gripped her before, when she had been bottling up her emotions and worries from him.   
  
  
    His hold on her shoulders tightened for a few brief moments, pulling her back into reality slightly as her mind struggled between being lost in the anxiety that was trying to consume her, and being afraid in the moment where she was now. She could see his lips moving, speaking words, but was drifting back into the thoughts that clawed at her mind. Once again, she felt him squeeze her shoulders, bringing her closer to the present. This time, she could hear him speak, his expression softening somewhat as he saw her understand what he said.   
  
  
    “Let’s get you cleaned up.”   
  
  
    Soon, Micolash was bringing a bucket of hot water through the house and into the small bathing room they had. Unlike many others on this street, they two of them had an actual wash tub instead of an iron one, something they considered themselves lucky to have. Knocking before he entered the room, Micolash carefully opened the door and pushed it open with his shoulder, trying his best not to spill any of the hot water he was carrying.   
  
  
    “Here’s another bucket.” He said, while pouring it’s contents into the slowly cooling tub of water.  Glancing to his friend who was sitting with her knees up to her chin along the side wall of the room, he sighed, walking over after putting his bucket down. Kneeling beside her, Micolash frowned a little and rested a hand on her knee.   
  
  
    She tiredly looked up at him, her once fearful expression now having faded into a much more somber one. Ami both looked and felt numb, the anxiety having drained from her and leaving a strangely absent feeling behind, apathy.   
  
  
    He tried to smile, but couldn’t find the strength to muster much more than a slight upward tilt of his lips. “Come now, you’ll feel better after you wash.”   
  
  
    It took a few, long moments, but Ami exhaled lightly and got up. She stared at the warm water in the tub, watching as her reflection gazed back. She could see a few faint speckles of blood across her face, and noted that her glasses hadn’t escaped the spray of crimson either, with dried little dots clinging to her lenses.   
  
  
    The door creaked open again, and she met her friends gaze as her head turned, Micolash standing there with some of her clothing in his arms. She hadn’t even noticed him leave. They exchanged looks for a few moments in silence, frail and yet overwhelming for those fleeting few seconds.   
  
  
    “I brought you a change of clothes.” Setting them down off to the side in a wash basin, he gave another weak, almost defeated looking smile as he made his way back to the door. “I’ll be in the common room. Alright?” With that, he left her alone in the, shutting the door behind him to allow her privacy.  
  
  
    It took her a few more moments, simply staring at the water as she dipped a fingertip in, watching the ripple bounce around and slowly fade away before she began to peel off her bloodstained clothing. The stench of it still wafted in the air around her, clinging to her body even after her drenched layers had been removed… Hot water and soap would help, that much she knew. But experience told her that it may not be enough for now.   
  
  
    As she slowly trudged into the living area, bathed and clad in clean clothing, Micolash looked up from where he was situated on the couch, perched on the very edge of it. He had been looking down at his feet, with a somewhat sorrowful stare. Now, his eyes had met hers once more, the both of them holding one same feeling within their depths. Uncertainty.   
  
  
    “I made some tea.” He weakly gestured to the table and teapot as she approached in a dazed shuffle. He raised an eyebrow at her, but had a feeling that he understood why she was being so sluggish. She needed rest. Scooting over to make some more room for her, Micolash frowned a bit, and gently draped an arm across her shoulders after she sat next to him.   
  
  
    Letting her head rest against his arm for a moment, Ami took in a few deep breaths to try and further calm herself. “I can still smell it, the blood… I can’t wash it away.”   
  
  
    Rubbing her back, he felt a small twinge of pain, but he ignored it in favour of consoling her. He could check himself for any injuries later, what mattered right now was making sure his friend was alright. “It’s ok, Ami. You’re just stressed.”   
  
  
    “But that doesn’t make it any better.” Looking up at him, she met his gaze head on, anxiety stirring within her. “I killed someone, I still smell his blood on my hands…” She began to slowly break down again, emotions overwhelming as her eyes became glassy, tears threatening to spill out.   
  
  
    Frowning even further at the look of despair in her eyes, Micolash pulled her a bit closer with the arm he had across her shoulders, hoping the contact would help soothe her. “How about some tea?” He asked, giving a pat to her knee with his free hand. “It should be about how you like it right now.”   
  
  
    She sniffled and lifted her glasses, wiping the tears from her eyes as she nodded ever so slightly. “A-Alright…”   
  
  
    He poured them both a cup, holding hers out to her and trying his best to give Ami a smile, even if it did come out a little crooked and weak. “It’ll be ok, Ami. Everything is going to be alright.”   
  
  
    Breathing in the strong scent of the dark liquid, she simply stared at her cup for a moment. “It’s been so long since I shot a rifle, I’d almost forgotten what it felt like…” Taking a sip of the rather bitter tea, she grimaced slightly, but made no effort to add any honey or milk to it, needing the strong taste to help keep her grounded for now.   
  
  
    “I never thought I’d end up shooting a man. I was taught to never point a gun at something unless you had the intention of killing it, and to never point it at a person because of that. And yet…” Her hands began to shake a bit, and she had to set down her cup. She could recall the days in her past, where she had bloodied her hands with a rifle before. But it was always animal blood. Human blood… It felt so different, the intent of killing something like a person. But as much as she hated to admit to it, that feeling… It didn’t entirely feel wrong.   
  
  
    The slight squeezing sensation on her knee caused her to look over at her friend as he too set down his tea. He took in a breath, letting out a sigh through his nose. “You did what you had to, don’t doubt that.”   
  
  
    “I know but-”   
  
  
    “None of that.” He interrupted, setting his hands on her shoulders and turning her to face him. “Don’t regret your decision to have killed him, Ami. If you hadn’t shot him, then we wouldn’t be here right now.”   
  
  
    Her eyes widened as he spoke, voice firm and yet gentle. He wasn’t scolding her, he was just trying to reassure her, reinforce her decision. He was right about that. If she hadn’t killed him, they would be dead. That man, whoever he was, had been set on killing them.  
  
  
    He was right. And the implications of her voicing such displeasure at it terrified her.   
  
  
    Tears began to well up in her eyes again, and the fear returned. But before Micolash could say or do anything to try and help calm her down, he was pushed over.   
  
  
    Ami buried her face in his chest, beginning to weep and shake once more, her arms holding him tightly to her. She had went to hug him, the force of her practically diving into his arms pushing him back onto the couch as she did so.   
  
  
    The small streams coming from her eyes began to soak through his vest, and into his shirt. Micolash didn’t know what to say, how to respond… So he stayed quiet, as his arms came to wrap around her in turn. His hand began to move, up and down her back, attempting to calm his friend down from yet another spike in her emotions.   
  
  
    But it was to be expected. She had just killed a person, and in doing so gone against something deeply ingrained in her. He may not have understood exactly what it was like to go through something like that, but he did understand that right now, she needed comfort.   
  
  
    “I’m sorry…” Ami choked out, her throat tight and sore from crying and heaving. “I’m sorry I doubted what I did, I-I didn’t mean-”   
  
  
    “Shhhh… I know what you meant.”   
  
  
    She stopped talking for a few minutes after that, letting the tears flow and trying to take in deep, slow breaths. The room became silent, with the exception of their breathing, staying like that for quite awhile before she found the strength to speak up again. “I’m glad we’re still here… That  _ you’re  _ here…”   
  
  
    Closing his eyes as he brought his feet up onto the couch, Micolash managed to genuinely smile for the first time that night since that incident with the beast killing man. “I’m glad we are too, Ami... Thank you.” That was the last thing he could recall saying, before the world faded to black.   
  
  
    The next thing he knew, he had awoke to light streaming into the room, illuminating the world with the bright glow of the morning sun. The night had passed, the blood moon was no more.   
  
  
Ami was still asleep in his arms, having passed out at around the same time as he had earlier that night. She seemed so much more at peace, now that she was sleeping. As if the worries and terrors that plagued her earlier were far, far away from her mind.   
  
  
    Even as he began to rouse further from his slumber, he made no effort to move, not wanting to risk waking his dear friend. She needed rest, much more than he did. Micolash raised a hand up, gently running it over her hair, noting how curly and puffy it had become since she had washed the blood from it that night.   
  
  
    Only one thought crossed his mind as his hand slid back down to the space between her shoulder blades. One that he found himself speaking aloud in a quiet, tired voice as he stared blankly at the ceiling above them.   
  
  
    “We need to speak with Laurence...”


End file.
